Table 2.
Patient characteristics.
| BA | COPD | ACO | p | p | p | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| N = 109 | N = 63 | N = 42 | BA vs. COPD |
BA vs. ACO |
COPD vs. ACO |
|
| Age, years | 64 (51–74) | 78 (73–83) | 73 (66–79) | <0.001 | 0.001 | 0.058 |
| Gender, male | 44 (40.4) | 53 (84.1) | 36 (85.7) | <0.001 | <0.001 | 0.825 |
| Never smoker | 71 (65.1) | 0 (0.0) | 0 (0.0) | <0.001 | <0.001 | 1.000 |
| Ex smoker | 33 (30.3) | 50 (79.4) | 35 (83.3) | <0.001 | <0.001 | 0.612 |
| Current smoker | 5 (4.6) | 13 (20.6) | 7 (16.7) | <0.001 | 0.014 | 0.612 |
| Smoking, pack-years | 0 (0–6) | 55 (40–68) | 40 (29–54) | <0.001 | <0.001 | 0.280 |
| Comorbidities | ||||||
| Rhinitis | 47 (43.1) | 4 (6.3) | 13 (31.0) | <0.001 | 0.171 | 0.001 |
| Atopic dermatitis | 9 (8.3) | 0 (0.0) | 5 (11.9) | 0.019 | 0.489 | 0.005 |
| Sinusitis | 22 (20.2) | 3 (4.8) | 9 (21.4) | 0.006 | 0.865 | 0.009 |
| Hypertension | 42 (38.5) | 27 (42.9) | 20 (47.6) | 0.577 | 0.309 | 0.631 |
| Hyperlipidemia | 21 (19.3) | 10 (15.9) | 14 (33.3) | 0.577 | 0.066 | 0.037 |
| Diabetes mellitus | 18 (16.5) | 7 (11.1) | 3 (7.1) | 0.225 | 0.092 | 0.497 |
| Laboratory data | ||||||
| WBC, /µL | 6200 (5050–7450) | 6000 (5100–7000) | 6850 (5900–7530) | >0.999 | 0.150 | 0.098 |
| Blood neutrophil count, /µL | 3550 (2840–4830) | 3760 (3130–4650) | 3820 (3260–4940) | >0.999 | 0.494 | >0.999 |
| Blood eosinophil count, /µL | 180 (90–340) | 140 (100–200) | 360 (190–530) | 0.161 | 0.006 | <0.001 |
| Blood eosinophil count, % | 2.8 (1.4–5.6) | 2.4 (1.6–3.4) | 4.3 (2.6–8.3) | 0.103 | 0.053 | <0.001 |
| d–ROMs, CARR U | 335 (304–388) | 358 (334–402) | 370 (344–428) | 0.018 | 0.004 | >0.999 |
| CRP, mg/dL | 0.08 (0.04–0.19) | 0.14 (0.05–0.35) | 0.14 (0.04–0.31) | 0.196 | 0.085 | >0.999 |
| SAA, µg/mL | 5.1 (3.0–10.8) | 6.1 (0.0–12.0) | 6.1 (3.2–11.6) | >0.999 | >0.999 | >0.999 |
| IL-6, pg/mL | 1.8 (1.2–3.5) | 3.1 (1.7–4.7) | 3.7 (2.1–6.9) | 0.003 | <0.001 | 0.199 |
| IL-8, pg/mL | 15.7 (11.3–21.4) | 21.0 (16.0–31.9) | 19.2 (14.3–24.9) | <0.001 | 0.063 | 0.736 |
| TNF-α, pg/mL | 0.7 (0.3–1.0) | 0.7 (0.5–1.0) | 0.9 (0.6–1.3) | 0.286 | 0.003 | 0.283 |
| IgE, IU/mL | 110 (40–340) | 40 (20–150) | 150 (50–640) | 0.002 | 0.608 | <0.001 |
| specific IgE against antigens, number | 3 (1–6) | 1 (0–2) | 3 (1–7) | <0.001 | >0.999 | 0.002 |
| Pulmonary function test | ||||||
| FVC, % predicted | 98.3 (86.5–107.3) | 96.4 (81.0–111.4) | 95.9 (86.3–104.9) | >0.999 | >0.999 | >0.999 |
| FEV1, % predicted | 92.2 (82.9–101.7) | 74.1 (50.5–87.0) | 71.1 (58.1–80.0) | <0.001 | <0.001 | 0.820 |
| FEV1/FVC, % | 75.2 (68.4–82.1) | 60.1 (46.1–67.1) | 56.3 (48.4–64.1) | <0.001 | <0.001 | >0.999 |
| FeNO, ppb | 26 (17–45) | 21 (13–28) | 38 (24–59) | 0.018 | 0.062 | <0.001 |
| Symptom | ||||||
| ACT Score | 22 (19–24) | NA | 20 (18–23) | NA | 0.052 | NA |
| CAT Score | NA | 10 (5–19) | 13 (9–17) | NA | NA | 0.224 |
| SGRQ Score | 20.2 (8.1–33.2) | 26.1 (14.0–39.8) | 28.8 (17.0–41.4) | 0.225 | 0.075 | >0.999 |
| Treatment | ||||||
| ICS use | 102 (93.6) | 16 (25.4) | 34 (81.0) | <0.001 | 0.020 | <0.001 |
| LABA use | 82 (75.2) | 49 (77.8) | 36 (85.7) | 0.379 | 0.162 | 0.310 |
| LAMA use | 23 (21.1) | 46 (73.0) | 27 (64.3) | <0.001 | <0.001 | 0.341 |
| OCS use | 14 (12.8) | 0 (0.0) | 4 (9.5) | 0.003 | 0.573 | 0.012 |
| Biologics use | 14 (12.8) | 0 (0.0) | 3 (7.1) | 0.003 | 0.321 | 0.031 |
Data presented are median (interquartile range) or number (%). BA, bronchial asthma; COPD, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease; ACO, asthma–COPD overlap; WBC, white blood cells; d–ROMs, derivatives–eactive oxygen metabolites; CRP, C-reactive protein; SAA, serum amyloid A; IL, interleukin; TNF-α, tumor necrosis factor alpha; IgE, immunoglobulin E; FVC, forced vital capacity; FEV1, forced expiratory volume in 1 s; FeNO, fractional exhaled nitric oxide; ACT, asthma control test; CAT, COPD assessment test; SGRQ, St. George’s Respiratory Questionnaire; ICS, inhaled corticosteroids; LABA, long-acting beta2-agonists; LAMA, long-acting muscarinic antagonists; OCS, oral corticosteroids; NA, not available.