TABLE 5.
Comparison of healthcare resource utilization (mean events per patient) among individuals diagnosed with AL amyloidosis in Alberta, Canada between 2010 and mid‐2019 with age‐sex matched members of the general population and between individuals with and without concurrent multiple myeloma
| Mean number of encounters (SD) | Mean difference | Standardized mean difference | |
|---|---|---|---|
| AL amyloidosis versus age‐sex matched general population | |||
| AL Amyloidosis | 199.4 (300.6) | 118.7 (93.0, 144.3) a | 0.7 (0.5, 0.8) a |
| General population | 80.8 (118.7) | Ref. | Ref. |
| AL amyloidosis only | |||
| Concurrent MM | 161.0 (207.6) | −49.8 (−135.3, 35.7) | −0.2 (−0.5, 0.1) |
| No concurrent MM | 210.7 (305.9) | Ref. | Ref. |
Abbreviations: CI, confidence interval; MM, multiple myeloma; SMD, standardized mean difference.
a
Cluster robust variance estimation is used to account for bias in the estimation of the standard error due to clustering within the data caused by matching. Ignoring this lack of independence tends to result in the underestimation of the standard error (i.e., the 95% CIs tend to be too narrow).