BMJ  2006;333 (1 July), doi:10.1136/bmj.333.7557.0

Adherence to treatment or placebo is linked to lower mortality

Adherence to drug therapy may be a surrogate marker for overall healthy behaviour. Simpson and colleagues (p 15) carried out a meta-analysis of 21 observational studies that reported the mortality and good or poor adherence to drug therapy of > 45 000 participants. For participants with good adherence to placebo or beneficial drug therapy, the risk of mortality was about half of that of participants with poor adherence. This supports the existence of a "healthy adherer" effect, say the authors.

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