P031 Adherence with Methotrexate in Tunisian Juvenile Idiopathic Arthritis Patients

Abstract Background Juvenile idiopathic arthritis (JIA) is the most common chronic rheumatic disease in the pediatric population. Methotrexate (MTX) has been considered as the cornerstone of treatment of poly and oligoarticular subtypes of JIA. However, this treatment is supposed to be for long term, which may involve an obstacle for adherence. The aims of the study were to evaluate adherence of Tunisian JIA patients to MTX and to identify factors associated with high adherence to MTX. Methods A cross-sectional study including patients with confirmed JIA diagnosis, according to the International League of Associations for Rheumatology (ILAR) criteria, was performed. Demographic data as well as disease characteristics were obtained from medical records. Laboratory markers including erythrocyte sedimentation rate (ESR) and C-reactive protein (CRP) were collected. Adherence was measured, for patients under MTX for >3 months, using the 5-item Compliance Questionnaire Rheumatology (CQR5) (1). Patients were divided into two groups: group 1: High adherence (HA) for patients having a CQR5 ≥ 80% and group 2: low adherence (LA) for patients having CQR5