Association between diabetes knowledge and medication adherence among people with type 2 diabetes mellitus of Gokarneshwor municipality: A community-based cross-sectional study

Successful management of diabetes requires adequate knowledge of diabetes and changes in lifestyle which is considered a key component of diabetes management. This study explored the association between diabetes knowledge and medication adherence of the people living with type 2 diabetes mellitus living in Gokarneshwor municipality. A community-based cross-sectional study was conducted in the wards of Gokarneshwor municipality. The study included a total of 310 participants and was conducted over a period of 1 year. Diabetes Knowledge was measured using Diabetes Knowledge Questionnaire (DKQ) and Medication Adherence was measured using Morisky’s Medication Adherence Scale (MMAS). Analysis was done using SPSS version 11.5. The study found the mean diabetes knowledge score to be 13.18 ± 3.73. Diabetes knowledge did not show any significant association with medication adherence. More than half of the participants (63.2%) had perfect medication adherence. After adjusting for confounding variables in logistic regression, only employment status emerged as a statistically significant predictor of perfect adherence (AOR = 0.492; p-value = 0.006), with employed patients demonstrating lower adherence compared to unemployed patients. The findings suggested that individuals with limited diabetes knowledge can still exhibit high levels of medication adherence, underscoring the complexity of adherence behaviors. The study did not find significant association between diabetes knowledge and medication adherence. Overall the study indicates that factors beyond diabetes knowledge influence medication adherence among people with type 2 diabetes.