Table 1.
Characteristics of COPD patients according to type of inhaler device used
| Characteristics | pMDI n=593 (26.8%) |
DPI n=1,620 (73.2%) |
Total N=2,213 |
P-value |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Female, % | 60.9% | 61.7% | 61.5% | 0.735 |
| Age mean (SD), years | 52.3 (19.6) | 53.2 (18.8) | 52.9 (18.5) | 0.326 |
| 18–28 | 15.85% | 7.78% | 9.94% | NA |
| 29–39 | 15.17% | 18.14% | 17.35% | NA |
| 40–50 | 14.84% | 21.19% | 20.02% | NA |
| 51–61 | 17.03% | 19.19% | 18.62% | NA |
| 62–72 | 17.53% | 16.29% | 16.63% | NA |
| 73–83 | 16.02% | 10.31% | 11.84% | NA |
| 83–96 | 3.54% | 6.36% | 5.60% | NA |
| Retirement status | 40.5% | 40.6% | 40.6% | 0.966 |
| Time since diagnosis (SD), years | 13.0 (5.3) | 13.0 (4.2) | 13.0 (4.5) | 0.994 |
| Asthma classification | ||||
| Mild intermittent | 19.7% | 19.4% | 19.5% | NA |
| Mild persistent | 31.0% | 30.5% | 30.6% | NA |
| Moderate persistent | 46.5% | 47.3% | 47.1% | NA |
| Severe persistent | 2.7% | 2.7% | 2.7% | 0.990 |
| FEV1 (SD) | 76.6 (9.9) | 79.1 (9.9) | 79.2 (9.9) | 0.256 |
| Allergy | 43.84% | 49.13% | 47.72% | 0.892 |
| ICS/LABA combination | ||||
| Formoterol/beclomethasone | 31.2% | 14.4% | 18.9% | NA |
| Formoterol/budesonide | 0.0% | 60.6% | 44.4% | NA |
| Salmeterol/fluticasone | 68.8% | 25.0% | 36.7% | NA |
| Exacerbations | 14.7% | 22.8% | 20.7% | <0.001 |
| Moderate | 11.6% | 22.0% | 19.2% | <0.001 |
| Acute | 5.2% | 6.7% | 6.3% | 0.199 |
| Comorbid conditions | ||||
| Obesity | 27.7% | 28.0% | 27.9% | 0.650 |
| Smoking | 21.8% | 22.4% | 22.2% | 0.743 |
| Alcoholism | 2.7% | 2.6% | 2.6% | 0.891 |
| Cardiovascular event | 9.8% | 9.7% | 9.7% | 0.948 |
| Hypertension | 25.6% | 24.7% | 24.9% | 0.650 |
| Diabetes | 14.3% | 13.8% | 13.9% | 0.732 |
| Dyslipidemia | 38.8% | 37.3% | 37.7% | 0.518 |
| Cerebrovascular events | 7.4% | 6.7% | 6.9% | 0.570 |
| Ischemic heart disease | 4.4% | 4.3% | 4.3% | 0.948 |
| Organ failures | 12.3% | 12.3% | 12.3% | 0.987 |
| Dementia | 2.2% | 2.2% | 2.2% | 0.964 |
| Depression | 18.5% | 18.2% | 18.3% | 0.855 |
| Neoplasm | 9.8% | 9.5% | 9.6% | 0.846 |
| Additional medication | ||||
| Oral corticosteroids | 14.7% | 22.8% | 20.7% | <0.001 |
| Systemic antibiotics | 2.7% | 7.0% | 5.9% | <0.001 |
| SABA | 80.3% | 80.4% | 80.3% | 0.958 |
| Number of visits to GP, (SD) | 12.5 (11.3) | 17.0 (14.0) | 15.8 (13.5) | <0.001 |
| Mean of number of visits to the emergency room, (SD) | 0.1 (0.3) | 0.2 (0.5) | 0.2 (0.5) | <0.001 |
| Mean of cost of pharmacological treatment (SD), Euros | 502.0 (510.4) | 407.0 (407.8) | 432.4 (439.5) | <0.001 |
| Days off from work (SD) | 2.5 (18.4) | 3.2 (22.2) | 3.1 (21.2) | 0.444 |
| Mean of total health care cost per patient (SD), Euros | 1,261 (2,093.8) | 1,520 (2,562.9) | 1,449.9 (2,448.4) | 0.024 |
Note: Patients’ characteristics of those who visited their primary care center between January 2007 and June 2014.
Abbreviations: COPD, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease; DPI, dry powder inhaler; FEV1, forced expiratory volume in the first second; GP, general practitioner; ICS/LABA, inhaled corticosteroid and long-acting β2-agonist; NA, not applicable; pMDI, pressurized metered dose inhaler; SABA, short-acting β2-agonist; SD, standard deviation.