Table 3.

Sensitivity analyses

	No. with pneumonia	No. quasi‐cohort (person‐days)	Quasi‐rates per 1000 person‐years	Rate ratio
				Crude	Adjusteda (95% CI)
Sensitivity analysis 1: excluding outcomes of hospitalization with pneumonia as secondary diagnosis
Non‐users b	933	10 872	1.41	1.00	Ref
Current users	268	1133	3.88	2.76	1.91 (1.56, 2.33)
Sensitivity analysis 2: excluding last 15 days prior to index person‐moment
Non‐users b	1662	18 190	2.41	1.71	Ref
Current users	266	1085	6.46	2.68	1.48 (1.22, 2.78)
Sensitivity analysis 3: classifying non‐users into past users and never users
Never users c	1201	14 676	2.15	1.00	Ref
Past users	314	2766	2.99	1.39	1.12 (0.96, 1.30)
Current users	413	1833	5.93	2.75	1.88 (1.60, 2.20)
Sensitivity analysis 4: stratifying non‐ICS users into current and non‐current users of other respiratory medications
Non‐ICS users currently using other respiratory medications
Current users	413	1833	3.69	1.82	1.61 (1.38, 1.89)
Non‐users b	1257	10 157	2.03	Ref	Ref
Non‐ICS users not currently using other respiratory medications
Current users	413	1833	2.81	6.36	4.81 (3.56, 6.51)
Non‐users b	258	7285	0.44	Ref	Ref
Sensitivity analysis 5: stratifying non‐ICS users and excluding last 15 days prior to index‐person moment
Non‐ICS users currently using other respiratory medications
Current users	214	969	3.62	1.67	1.32 (1.09, 1.60)
Non‐users b	1456	11 021	2.16	Ref	Ref
Non‐ICS users not currently using other respiratory medications
Current users	214	969	2.49	6.24	3.07 (2.08, 4.51)
Non‐users b	258	7285	0.40	Ref	Ref
Sensitivity analysis 6: restricting asthma patients to those with three prescriptions on at least two occasions over the span of 1 year
Current users	189	946	4.58	2.47	1.74 (1.37, 2.21)
Non‐users b	389	4801	1.86	Ref	Ref

CI, confidence interval

^aAdjusted for all of the factors listed in Table 1 unless otherwise indicated.

^bReference group (Ref); refers to no use of ICS (fluticasone, budesonide, beclomethasone, flunisolide or triamcinolone) in the 60 days prior to the index person‐moment.

^cReference group; refers to no use of ICS (fluticasone, budesonide, beclomethasone, flunisolide or triamcinolone) in the 365 days prior to the index person‐moment.