Table 3.
Frequency of pharmacy use over 1 year post index for 648 COPD patients by Global Initiative for Chronic Obstructive Lung Disease (GOLD) stage
| Variable | Normal spirometry [n (%)] | Restricted spirometry [n (%)] | GOLD stage I, mild [n (%)] | GOLD stage II, moderate [n (%)] | GOLD stage III, severe [n (%)] | GOLD stage IV, very severe [n (%)] |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Total number of patients | 138 (100.0) | 144 (100.0) | 71 (100.0) | 180 (100.0) | 96 (100.0) | 19 (100.0) |
| No treatment* | 98 (71) | 89 (61.8) | 40 (56.3) | 103 (57.2) | 44 (45.8) | 11 (57.9) |
| Antibiotic/oral corticosteroid | 31 (22.5) | 48 (33.3) | 24 (33.8) | 49 (27.2) | 33 (34.4) | 4 (21.1) |
| Maintenance treatment† | 21 (15.2) | 23 (16.0) | 20 (28.2) | 48 (26.7) | 42 (43.8) | 8 (42.1) |
| Rescue therapy‡ | 10 (7.2) | 19 (13.2) | 8 (11.3) | 28 (15.6) | 35 (36.5) | 4 (21.1) |
*
Notes: Patients may use drugs from multiple categories: percentages shown are not additive for antibiotic/oral corticosteroid, maintenance treatment, or rescue therapy;
†
fluticasone propionate/salmeterol xinafoate combination, ipratropium, tiotropium, long-acting beta agonist, inhaled corticosteroid;
‡
short-acting beta agonist or nebulized short-acting beta agonist.