Thesis Title: The development, validation, and evaluation of quantitative assays for determining adherence of heart failure patients to carvedilol, enalapril and perindopril

André Joubert completed his Bachelor’s and Master’s degrees in Chemical Engineering at Stellenbosch University. He joined UCT’s Division of Clinical Pharmacology in 2018 to commence his doctoral studies. Before joining UCT, he worked in the pulp and paper and energy industries. Carvedilol, enalapril, and perindopril are commonly prescribed for the treatment of heart failure. André Joubert's thesis focuses on developing assays to quantify carvedilol and the metabolites of enalapril and perindopril, enalaprilat and perindoprilat, respectively, in patient plasma and dried blood spot samples. The assays developed allowed the quantifying of the analytes in the dried blood spot and plasma samples of patients taking part in a pharmacokinetic study. He uses the data from the pharmacokinetic study to evaluate the assays' potential to determine the adherence of heart failure patients to taking the carvedilol, enalapril and perindopril they have been prescribed. The assays are found to be useful tools in assisting clinicians determine patient medication adherence. The assays will help generate adherence data of heart failure patients in Africa, which is a critical step to better understanding the high mortality rate of heart failure patients in the region.

Supervisor: A/Professor L Wiesner (Medicine)

Co-supervisor: Emeritus Professor G Maartens (Medicine)