Table 2.
Baseline patient characteristics, according to provider type
| Patient characteristic | Physician (n = 3622) | Supervised MLP (n = 319) | Unsupervised MLP (n = 88) | P |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Demographic factors | ||||
| Age, median (IQR), y | 34 (24–43) | 35 (24–43) | 33 (23–41) | .18 |
| Female, % | 64 | 70 | 59 | .052 |
| Race/Ethnicity, %* | <.001 | |||
| White | 33 | 34 | 18 | |
| Black | 47 | 38 | 47 | |
| Hispanic | 17 | 25 | 28 | |
| Other | 3 | 2 | 7 | |
| Chronic asthma factors, % | ||||
| Ever admitted for asthma | 26 | 26 | 13 | .02 |
| ED visit for asthma in past year | 24 | 18 | 13 | .003 |
| Ever intubated or ventilated for asthma | 9 | 9 | 0 | .002 |
| ED presentation | ||||
| Recent upper respiratory infection, % | 31 | 37 | 49 | <.001 |
| Duration of symptoms <24 h, % | 36 | 33 | 22 | .02 |
| Transported to ED by ambulance, % | 20 | 20 | 10 | .053 |
| Initial respiratory rate, median (IQR), breath/min | 20 (19–24) | 20 (18–24) | 20 (18–20) | <.001 |
| Initial oxygen saturation, median (IQR) | 97 (95–99) | 98 (96–99) | 98 (96–99) | .04 |
| Initial PEF, median (IQR), L/min † | 240 (160–300) | 250 (180–330) | 275 (200–325) | .01 |
| Severity based on initial PEF, % † | .02 | |||
| Mild | 22 | 31 | 30 | |
| Moderate | 39 | 39 | 50 | |
| Severe | 29 | 21 | 15 | |
| Very severe | 10 | 10 | 5 |
*
Available among a subset of patients (n = 2610).
†
Available among a subset of patients (n = 1863).