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Published on: November 4, 2010
Relationship between recent short-acting beta-agonist use and subsequent asthma exacerbations
Jason Paris1, Edward L Peterson, Karen Wells
1Department of Internal Medicine, Henry Ford Hospital, Detroit, Michigan 48202, USA.
Summary
Recent short-acting beta-agonist (SABA) use indicates poor asthma control. SABA nebulizer use, more than metered-dose inhaler use, strongly predicts asthma exacerbations and hospitalizations.
Area of Science:
- Pulmonology
- Clinical Medicine
- Pharmacology
Background:
- National guidelines suggest assessing short-acting beta-agonist (SABA) use for asthma severity.
- The link between recent SABA use and asthma exacerbations remains unclear.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate the relationship between SABA type and frequency and asthma outcomes.
- To assess SABA use as a predictor of asthma exacerbations.
Main Methods:
- Examined SABA use in asthma patients aged 5-56 from a health maintenance organization.
- Used pharmacy data to estimate SABA fill frequency over 3 months.
- Employed Cox proportional hazards models for SABA metered-dose inhaler (MDI) and nebulizer use.
Main Results:
- SABA nebulizer use correlated with increased asthma-related emergency department visits (aHR, 6.32) and hospitalizations (aHR, 21.62).
- No significant association was found between SABA MDI use frequency and these adverse outcomes.
- Over 76% of the 2,056 patients studied used SABA medication in their baseline year.
Conclusions:
- Recent SABA use, particularly nebulizer formulations, is linked to adverse asthma outcomes.
- The type of SABA delivery device holds prognostic significance for asthma control.
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