Table 2.
Characteristics of T2LOW versus T2HIGH Exacerbations at First Assessed Exacerbation (n = 71)
| T2LOW (n = 19) | T2BIOLOGY (n = 52) | P Value | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Characteristics at study entry | ||||
| Age at study enrollment, y | N = 71 | 56.3 (12.8) | 52.9 (14.0) | 0.35 |
| Sex | ||||
| Female | N = 71 | 15 (78.9%) | 33 (63.5%) | 0.22 |
| Male | 4 (21.1%) | 19 (36.5%) | ||
| BMI, kg/m2 | N = 70 | 35.8 (10.2) | 33.5 (6.7) | 0.27 |
| Atopic disease | N = 71 | 15 (78.9%) | 36 (69.2%) | 0.42 |
| Rescue courses of oral steroids in the last year | N = 71 | 3.0 (2.0 to 3.0) | 2.5 (2.0 to 4.0) | 0.46 |
| Prior admission for asthma to HDU/ICU | N = 71 | 4 (21.1%) | 14 (26.9%) | 0.61 |
| Number of prior admissions for asthma to HDU/ICU | N = 18 | 1.0 (1.0 to 1.0) | 1.0 (1.0 to 2.0) | 0.24 |
| At exacerbation | ||||
| FEV1, L | N = 70 | 1.7 (0.7) | 1.8 (0.8) | 0.64 |
| Difference from baseline in FEV1, L | N = 70 | −0.2 (0.4) | −0.2 (0.3) | 0.93 |
| % predicted FEV1 | N = 70 | 64.0 (24.1) | 61.4 (17.6) | 0.63 |
| Difference from baseline in % predicted FEV1 | N = 70 | −8.5 (12.8) | −8.3 (11.4) | 0.96 |
| FVC, L | N = 70 | 1.7 (0.7) | 1.8 (0.8) | 0.64 |
| Difference from baseline in FVC, L | N = 70 | −0.4 (0.7) | −0.3 (0.4) | 0.55 |
| % predicted FVC | N = 70 | 81.9 (20.1) | 78.0 (14.4) | 0.37 |
| Difference from baseline in % predicted FVC | N = 70 | −11.6 (22.7) | −8.1 (11.4) | 0.40 |
| FEV1/FVC | N = 69 | 0.61 (0.15) | 0.63 (0.11) | 0.60 |
| Difference from baseline in FEV1/FVC | N = 69 | −0.01 (0.07) | −0.02 (0.06) | 0.45 |
| PEFR, L/min | N = 64 | 301.9 (109.5) | 305.7 (109.6) | 0.90 |
| Difference from baseline in PEFR, L/min | N = 63 | −47.9 (52.7) | −46.6 (56.1) | 0.93 |
| Sputum eosinophils, %* | N = 26 | 0.0 (0.0 to 1.5) | 3.3 (1.3 to 15.8) | 0.018 |
| Difference from baseline sputum eosinophils, % | N = 21 | −0.3 (−2.0 to 0.0) | 2.9 (−3.8 to 10.3) | 0.14 |
| Sputum neutrophils, %* | N = 26 | 56.2 (25.7 to 73.2) | 53.3 (30.7 to 78.8) | 0.85 |
| Difference from baseline in sputum neutrophils, % | N = 21 | −5.6 (−37.3 to 4.2) | −5.1 (−13.8 to 11.0) | 0.65 |
| FeNO, ppb | N = 71 | 11 (9 to 14) | 32 (22 to 44) | <0.0001 |
| Difference from baseline in FeNO, ppb | N = 71 | −3 (−11 to 0) | 9 (−2 to 20) | 0.0005 |
| Blood eosinophils, 109/L | N = 71 | 0.04 (0.02 to 0.10) | 0.21 (0.12 to 0.41) | <0.0001 |
| Difference from baseline in blood eosinophils, 109/L | N = 71 | −0.15 (−0.19 to −0.01) | −0.00 (−0.11 to 0.16) | 0.0028 |
| Periostin, ng/ml | N = 70 | 47.2 (14.1) | 53.7 (19.5) | 0.19 |
| Difference from baseline in periostin, ng/mL | N = 69 | −1.0 (6.8) | 1.2 (18.6) | 0.62 |
| ACQ-7 score | N = 69 | 3.4 (1.1) | 3.7 (0.9) | 0.24 |
| Difference from baseline in ACQ-7 score | N = 69 | 1.4 (0.8) | 1.3 (0.8) | 0.72 |
| Temperature, C | N = 69 | 37.0 (36.6 to 37.4) | 36.7 (36.3 to 36.9) | 0.028 |
| Difference from baseline in temperature, C | N = 68 | 0.3 (−0.1 to 0.7) | 0.1 (−0.1 to 0.4) | 0.072 |
| CRP, mg/L | N = 55 | 4.8 (2.0 to 9.3) | 7.7 (5.0 to 11.0) | 0.31 |
| Any virus, PCR | N = 24 | 8 (88.9%) | 6 (40.0%) | 0.019 |
| Any bacteria, Spec qPCR | N = 23 | 4 (50.0%) | 6 (40.0%) | 0.65 |
| Any bacteria or virus, Spec qPCR | N = 23 | 8 (100.0%) | 10 (66.7%) | 0.065 |
| Oral/i.v. CS | N = 71 | 12 (63.2%) | 40 (76.9%) | 0.25 |
| ABX | N = 71 | 12 (63.2%) | 21 (40.4%) | 0.089 |
| Oral/i.v. CS and ABX | N = 71 | 10 (52.6%) | 19 (36.5%) | 0.22 |
Definition of abbreviations: ABX = antibiotics; ACQ-7 = asthma Control Questionnaire-7; BMI = body mass index; CRP = C-reactive protein; CS = corticosteroid; FeNO = fractional exhaled nitric oxide; HDU = high dependency unit; i.v. = intravenous; PEFR = peak expiratory flow rate; qPCR = quantitative PCR; Spec = specific bacteria threshold of ⩾106 genome copies/ml on quantitative PCR; T2 = type 2.
Descriptive statistics are shown as mean (SD), median (interquartile range), or number (%) as appropriate.
*
Sputum differential cell count at first exacerbation (n = 26), 9 of 26 were T2LOW, and 17 of 26 were T2HIGH.