Table 3. Patient characteristics according to first step-up therapy during 1999–2011.
| FDC (n=1,107) | Add LABA (n=2,329) | Increase ICS dose (n=6,252) | Add LTRA (n=1,105) | P valuea | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Median (IQR) age, years | 10 (8, 11) | 9 (6, 11) | 8 (6, 10) | 8 (6, 10) | <0.001 |
| Male sex | 660 (59.6) | 1,343 (57.7) | 3,663 (58.6) | 670 (60.6) | 0.37 |
|
Median (IQR) BMI centile
| |||||
| Median (IQR) | 65 (29, 93) | 68 (28, 94) | 67 (31, 93) | 65 (31, 93) | 0.13 |
| Missing, n (%) | 457 (41.3) | 1,076 (46.2) | 2,875 (46.0) | 450 (40.7) | |
|
BMI centile, categorised
| |||||
| <91th | 467 (42.2) | 881 (37.8) | 2427 (38.8) | 466 (42.2) | <0.001 |
| 91–97th | 102 (9.2) | 175 (7.5) | 440 (7.0) | 108 (9.8) | |
| ⩾98th | 81 (7.3) | 197 (8.5) | 510 (8.2) | 81 (7.3) | |
| Missing | 457 (41.3) | 1,076 (46.2) | 2,875 (46.0) | 450 (40.7) | |
| Rhinitis diagnosis | 243 (22.0) | 575 (24.7) | 1,404 (22.5) | 275 (24.9) | 0.06 |
| Eczema drugs | 552 (49.9) | 1,085 (46.6) | 3,149 (50.4) | 574 (51.9) | 0.006 |
| Paracetamol prescription | 162 (14.6) | 316 (13.6) | 915 (14.6) | 175 (15.8) | 0.34 |
| Asthma diagnosis | 1,073 (96.9) | 2,247 (96.5) | 6,067 (97.0) | 1,060 (95.9) | 0.19 |
| Median (IQR) index year | 2006 (2004, 2008) | 2004 (2002, 2006) | 2004 (2001, 2007) | 2007 (2004, 2008) | <0.001 |
| First asthma prescription >1 year before index date | 771 (69.7) | 1,552 (66.6) | 4,258 (68.1) | 752 (68.1) | 0.34 |
|
Average ICS daily dosag
e (µg)
| |||||
| >0–100 | 379 (34.2) | 792 (34.0) | 3,400 (54.4) | 457 (41.4) | <0.001 |
| 101–200 | 387 (35.0) | 818 (35.1) | 1,811 (29.0) | 376 (34.0) | |
| 201+ | 341 (30.8) | 719 (30.9) | 1,041 (16.7) | 272 (24.6) | |
|
Medication possession ratio
| |||||
| ⩾80% | 211 (19.1) | 506 (21.7) | 1,516 (24.2) | 246 (22.3) | <0.001 |
|
SABA prescription
| |||||
| 1+ | 1,083 (97.8) | 2,261 (97.1) | 5,883 (94.1) | 1,067 (96.6) | <0.001 |
|
Mean daily SABA dosa
ge (µg)
| |||||
| 0 | 24 (2.2) | 68 (2.9) | 369 (5.9) | 38 (3.4) | <0.001 |
| >0–200 | 584 (52.8) | 1,229 (52.8) | 3,478 (55.6) | 583 (52.8) | |
| 201+ | 499 (45.1) | 1,032 (44.3) | 2,405 (38.5) | 484 (43.8) | |
|
Acute oral steroid use
| |||||
| ⩾1 | 156 (14.1) | 237 (10.2) | 512 (8.2) | 129 (11.7) | <0.001 |
|
Asthma-related out-patient visit
| |||||
| ⩾1 | 14 (1.3) | 18 (0.8) | 48 (0.8) | 19 (1.7) | 0.01 |
|
Asthma-related In-patient visit
| |||||
| ⩾1 | 11 (1.0) | 9 (0.4) | 22 (0.4) | 9 (0.8) | 0.01 |
|
Asthma-related A&E visit
| |||||
| ⩾1 | 6 (0.5) | 6 (0.3) | 36 (0.6) | 8 (0.7) | |
|
Antibiotics with evidence of respiratory review
| |||||
| 0 | 800 (72.3) | 1,631 (70.0) | 4,523 (72.3) | 702 (63.5) | <0.001 |
| 1 | 210 (19.0) | 470 (20.2) | 1,199 (19.2) | 228 (20.6) | |
| 2+ | 97 (8.8) | 228 (9.8) | 530 (8.5) | 175 (15.8) | |
|
GP consultations for asthma
| |||||
| 0 | 180 (16.3) | 524 (22.5) | 1,663 (26.6) | 288 (24.6) | <0.001 |
| 1 | 297 (26.8) | 580 (24.9) | 1,950 (31.2) | 286 (25.9) | |
| 2 | 249 (22.5) | 530 (22.8) | 1,405 (22.5) | 235 (21.3) | |
| 3+ | 381 (34.4) | 695 (29.8) | 1,234 (19.7) | 296 (26.8) | |
|
GP consultations not for asthma
| |||||
| 0 | 99 (8.9) | 240 (10.3) | 713 (11.4) | 65 (5.9) | <0.001 |
| 1–2 | 314 (28.4) | 618 (26.5) | 1,847 (29.5) | 254 (23.0) | |
| 3–5 | 359 (32.4) | 800 (34.3) | 2,033 (32.5) | 361 (32.7) | |
| 6+ | 335 (30.3) | 671 (28.8) | 1,659 (26.5) | 425 (38.5) | |
| OPCRD data source (versus CPRD) | 740 (66.8) | 1,709 (73.4) | 4,378 (70.0) | 782 (70.8) | <0.001 |
Numbers denote n (%) unless specified otherwise.
Abbreviations: BMI, body mass index; CPRD, Clinical Practice Research Datalink; FDC, fixed dose combination inhaler; ICS, inhaled corticosteroids; IQR, interquartile range; LABA, long-acting β2-agonist; LTRA, leukotriene receptor antagonist; OPCRD, Optimum Patient Care Research Database.
a
Χ 2-test for categorical variables and Kruskal–Wallis for variables measured on the interval or ratio scale.