TABLE 1.
First‐line inclusion of metered‐dose inhalers (MDIs) and dry powder inhalers (DPIs)
| Criteria | Proportion of CCGs in accordance with criteria for each device type (%) | |
|---|---|---|
| DPIs | MDIs | |
| SABA: Inclusion first‐line, n (%) | 103/133 (77) | 133/133 (100) |
| Low‐dose ICS: Inclusion first‐line, n (%) | 113/144 (78) | 144/144 (100) |
| Low‐dose ICS + LABA: Inclusion first‐line, n (%) | 130/144 (90) | 143/144 (99) |
| Med dose ICS + LABA: Inclusion first‐line, n (%) | 130/144 (90) | 143/144 (99) |
| High‐dose ICS + LABA: Inclusion first‐line, n (%) | 128/133 (96) | 130/133 (98) |
| Device included first‐line for ALL included steps in guidance, n (%) | 106/144 (74) | 141/144 (98) |
| Device included first‐line in ZERO included steps in guidance, n (%) | 14/144 (10) | 0/144 (0) |
Column 1 (Criteria) lists the questions applied to each guidance document. Columns 2 and 3 show the number of CCGs in accordance with each criterion. Each question is applied to the guidance for both DPIs and MDIs. For some of these questions, the denominator in Column 2 and 3 is lower than 144. This is because some guidance documents did not include advice for certain classes of device, in which case the response to the question was left as null. Rows 6 and 7 relate to included steps in each guidance document; this relates to the BTS/SIGN asthma treatment guidance. Not every document contained device recommendations for each step, so this value was calculated based only on the presence of DPIs or MDIs on all the steps included in any particular document, NOT necessarily all 5 steps.
CCG, clinical commissioning group; ICS, inhaled corticosteroid; LABA, long‐acting β‐agonist; SABA, short‐acting β‐agonist.