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OBJECTIVE: To develop and validate a questionnaire to screen for potential nonadherence in patients with chronic ailments. METHODS: Themes from qualitative interviews with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease patients were used in developing content of the questionnaire. The questionnaire was distributed to 525 ambulatory patients with chronic lung diseases. Principal components analysis was performed to identify the subscales in the questionnaire. Internal consistency, validity and stability of the subscales were also evaluated. RESULTS: The 30-item Beliefs and Behaviour Questionnaire (BBQ) measures beliefs, experiences and adherent behaviour on five-point Likert-type scales. Two hundred and eighty patients (53.3%) with a mean age of 71.1 years responded to the questionnaire. The 'beliefs' section had a two-factor solution-'confidence' and 'concerns' with internal consistencies of 0.82 and 0.45, respectively. The two domains identified from the section 'experiences'-satisfaction' and 'disappointment' had internal consistencies of 0.85 and 0.52, respectively. The 'behaviour' section, separately entitled the Tool for Adherence Behaviour Screening (TABS), had a two-factor solution-'adherence' and 'nonadherence', with internal consistencies of 0.80 and 0.59, respectively. All the domains demonstrated comparable reliabilities across two different patient populations. Their temporal stabilities ranged between 0.62 and 0.94. CONCLUSION: The validity, reliability and utility of the BBQ and the TABS, a sub-scale of the BBQ that screens both intentional and unintentional nonadherence to pharmacological and non-pharmacological disease management, have been established. PRACTICE IMPLICATIONS: The BBQ and the TABS have potential applications in screening adherence beliefs, experiences and behaviour in both clinical practice and research. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: N-acetylcysteine is used as prophylaxis to prevent contrast-induced nephropathy. Aim: To investigate the stability of a formulated N-acetylcysteine capsule for prevention of contrast-induced nephropathy. Method: Gelatine capsules containing N-acetylcysteine and lactose were stored at 2-8 °C, 18-25 °C and 40 °C, with and without desiccant, at ambient and high humidity (~75%). Capsule stability was assessed using high performance liquid chromatography to measure N-acetylcysteine and N,Ndiacetylcystine (breakdown product) on Days 0, 3, 7, 14, 28, 84, 168, 252, 336 and 420 of storage. Results: At 40 °C and high humidity the capsules showed severe physical degradation and hydrogen sulphide odour, and loss of N-acetylcysteine was around 30-40% by 420 days. Under all other storage conditions, the N-acetylcysteine content was stable up to 420 days (± 2% change from initial content), irrespective of humidity. The presence of desiccant did not significantly affect stability and the presence of N,N-diacetylcystine barely exceeded the European Pharmacopoeia limit of 0.5%. Conclusion: The formulated N-acetylcysteine capsule was stable for 420 days when stored at 2-8 °C, 18-25 °C and 40 °C. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]