The Korean journal of internal medicine

The Korean Association of Internal Medicine (대한내과학회)
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Short-acting β2-agonist prescriptions in patients with asthma: findings from the South Korean cohort of SABINA III

  • Kwang-Ha Yoo (Division of Pulmonary, Allergy and Critical Care Medicine, Department of Internal Medicine, Konkuk University Medical Center, Konkuk University School of Medicine) ;
  • Sang-Ha Kim (Department of Internal Medicine, Yonsei University Wonju College of Medicine) ;
  • Sang-Heon Kim (Department of Internal Medicine, Hanyang University College of Medicine) ;
  • Ji-Yong Moon (Department of Internal Medicine, Hanyang University College of Medicine) ;
  • Heung-Woo Park (Department of Internal Medicine, Seoul National University Hospital) ;
  • Yoon-Seok Chang (Department of Internal Medicine, Seoul National University College of Medicine) ;
  • Maarten J.H.I Beekman (AstraZeneca)
  • Received : 2023.02.23
  • Accepted : 2023.08.11
  • Published : 2024.01.01
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Abstract

Background/Aims: Despite short-acting β2-agonist (SABA) overuse being associated with poor asthma outcomes, data on SABA use in South Korea is scarce. Herein, we describe prescription patterns of SABA and other asthma medications in patients from the South Korean cohort of the SABA use IN Asthma (SABINA) III study. Methods: This study included patients with asthma aged ≥ 12 years, who had ≥ 3 consultations with the same healthcare provider, and medical records containing data for ≥ 12 months prior to the study visit. Patients were classified by investigator-defined asthma severity (per 2017 Global Initiative for Asthma recommendations) and practice type (primary or specialist care). Data on disease characteristics, asthma treatments, and clinical outcomes in the 12 months before the study visit were collected using electronic case report forms. Results: Data from 476 patients (mean age, 55.4 years; female, 63.0%) were analyzed. Most patients were treated by specialists (83.7%) and had moderate-to-severe asthma (91.0%). Overall, 7.6% of patients were prescribed ≥ 3 SABA canisters (defined as over-prescription). In patients prescribed SABA in addition to maintenance therapy, 47.4% were over-prescribed SABA. Most patients (95.4%) were prescribed a fixed-dose combination of an inhaled corticosteroid and a long-acting β2-agonist as maintenance therapy. Although asthma was well-controlled/partly-controlled in 91.6% of patients, 29.6% experienced ≥ 1 severe asthma exacerbation. Conclusions: SABA over-prescription was reported in nearly 50% of patients prescribed SABA in addition to maintenance therapy, underscoring the need to align clinical practices with the latest evidence-based recommendations and educate physicians and patients on appropriate SABA use.

Keywords

Acknowledgement

Medical writing and editorial support were provided by Tejaswini Subbannayya, PhD, of Cactus Life Sciences (part of Cactus Communications, Mumbai, India), in accordance with Good Publication Practice (GPP3) guidelines (http://www.ismpp.org/gpp3), which was fully funded by AstraZeneca.

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