Table 4.
Association between GP Visit Regularity of Patients with CRD and Risk of Death and First CRD Hospitalisation, Overall and by Pharmacotherapy Level
| GP visit regularity quintile | All patients | SAB | Low dose ICS | Medium dose ICS ± LAB | High dose ICS ± LAB ± OS |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| HR (95% CI)a | HR (95% CI)a | HR (95% CI)a | HR (95% CI)a | HR (95% CI)a | |
| All-cause mortality | |||||
| Least regular | 1.00 | 1.00 | 1.00 | 1.00 | 1.00 |
| 2nd least regular | 0.90 (0.79–1.01) | 0.85 (0.62–1.16) | 1.05 (0.68–1.61) | 1.03 (0.82–1.30) | 0.84 (0.71–1.00) |
| Medium regular | 0.84 (0.75–0.95) | 0.95 (0.70–1.29) | 0.81 (0.53–1.23) | 0.93 (0.74–1.17) | 0.79 (0.67–0.93) |
| 2nd most regular | 0.90 (0.80–1.01) | 1.17 (0.87–1.57) | 0.81 (0.53–1.23) | 0.95 (0.75–1.20) | 0.81 (0.69–0.96) |
| Most regular | 0.95 (0.83–1.08) | 1.34 (0.97–1.86) | 0.91 (0.57–1.44) | 1.13 (0.86–1.50) | 0.75 (0.62–0.91) |
| First CRD hospitalisation | |||||
| Least regular | 1.00 | 1.00 | 1.00 | 1.00 | 1.00 |
| 2nd least regular | 0.92 (0.83–1.00) | 0.82 (0.58–1.17) | 1.29 (0.81–2.06) | 0.93 (0.79–1.09) | 0.97 (0.86–1.10) |
| Medium regular | 0.84 (0.77–0.92) | 0.66 (0.46–0.94) | 1.20 (0.76–1.91) | 0.87 (0.74–1.02) | 0.90 (0.80–1.02) |
| 2nd most regular | 0.74 (0.67–0.82) | 0.51 (0.34–0.76) | 1.04 (0.64–1.69) | 0.72 (0.60–0.85) | 0.82 (0.72–0.94) |
| Most regular | 0.77 (0.68–0.86) | 0.72 (0.46–1.12) | 0.90 (0.50–1.62) | 0.72 (0.58–0.89) | 0.84 (0.71–0.99) |
aAdjusted for number of GP visits, gender, ethnicity, age, socioeconomic status, residential remoteness and Charlson Index using Cox multivariate regression.
HR = hazard ratio; 95% CI = 95% confidence interval; SAB = short-acting bronchodilators; ICS = inhaled corticosteroids; LAB = long-acting bronchodilators; OS = oral steriods