Table I.
Baseline characteristics of the study population
| Variable | Biologics use∗ (n = 50) | No biologics use (n = 8192) | P value |
|---|---|---|---|
| Age (y) | <.001 | ||
| Mean ± SD | 55.3 ± 14.4 | 43.2 ± 20.5 | |
| Median (interquartile range) | 56.5 (46.0-65.4) | 37.3 (25.3-59.0) | |
| Female sex | 35 (70.0) | 4308 (52.6) | .014 |
| Ethnicity | .549 | ||
| Jews | 35 (70.0) | 6041 (73.7) | |
| Arabs | 15 (30.0) | 2151 (26.3) | |
| Diabetes | 14 (28.0) | 1303 (15.9) | .020 |
| Hypertension | 16 (32.0) | 1697 (20.7) | .050 |
| Obesity | 25 (50) | 2653 (32.4) | .008 |
| Ischemic heart disease | 7 (14.0) | 620 (7.6) | .087 |
| Smoking (ever) | 14 (28.0) | 2170 (26.5) | .809 |
| Steroids use in the previous year | <.001 | ||
| Yes | 34 (68.0) | 1324 (16.2) | |
| No | 16 (32.0) | 6868 (83.8) | |
| Steroids use in the previous year | <.001 | ||
| No | 16 (32.0) | 6868 (83.8) | |
| Recent (≤120 d) | 21 (42.0) | 569 (6.9) | |
| Former (120-365 d) | 13 (26.0) | 755 (9.2) | |
| Chronic steroids treatment (≥6 prescriptions in the previous year) | <.001 | ||
| Yes | 10 (20.0) | 152 (1.9) | |
| No | 40 (80.0) | 8040 (98.1) | |
| Steroid use in the previous year (no. of filled prescriptions) | <.001 | ||
| 0 prescription | 16 (32.0) | 6868 (83.8) | |
| 1 prescription | 6 (12.0) | 721 (8.8) | |
| 2 prescriptions | 11 (22.0) | 265 (3.2) | |
| ≥3 prescriptions | 17 (34.0) | 338 (4.1) | |
| Biologics use∗ | |||
| Omalizumab | 24 (48.0) | ||
| Benralizumab | 7 (14.0) | ||
| Mepolizumab | 13 (26.0) | ||
| Reslizumab | 3 (6.0) | ||
| Dupilumab | 3 (6.0) |
∗
Biologics use was defined as the documentation of filling at least 1 prescription of omalizumab, benralizumab, mepolizumab, reslizumab, or dupilumab in the 120 d before the positive PCR test result date.