Introduction

Chagas disease is endemic in the state of Morelos. The available medication is benznidazole, however adherence to treatment is generally not monitored by medical personnel to verify the accomplishment.

Objective

To evaluate the adherence to therapeutic treatment and the risk factors associated with its compliance and the registry of adverse effects in patients with Chagas disease in the state of Morelos.

Material and Methods

Follow-up study in 20 chronic asymptomatic patients. Adherence was assessed using the Morisky-Green structured test, a questionnaire was applied to record the risk factors related to adherence to treatment, home visits were made to the cases, and personalized interviews were conducted in 8 cases to obtain information on positive and negative factors associated with treatment.

Results

Sixty five percent of patients were adherent to treatment and 35% were non-adherent due to non-compliance behaviors. Seven cases (35%) had some type of adverse reaction to the drug that did not warrant treatment discontinuation, except for two cases that had severe reactions. Statistical analysis of the variables in adherent and non-adherent cases showed no statistical association between adherence and variables of socioeconomic level, school level, access to medical service, marital status, age and sex.

Conclusions

Adherence assessment in patients with a confirmed diagnosis of Chagas' disease in the state of Morelos provided information to follow up on treatment compliance and record of adverse effects.

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