Changes in Persistent Asthma Care and Outcomes From 2006 to 2016 in France.

BACKGROUND: Changes in asthma care need to be documented at arrival of biotherapies.

OBJECTIVES: To characterize changes in asthma care and outcomes in patients with persistent asthma.

METHODS: Repeated transversal analyses were conducted on a historical cohort using the French national claims data over 10 years. Patients aged 18 to 40 years with either 1 or more (any-use population) or 4 or more (high-use population) yearly dispensings of controller therapy were selected. Clinical and demographic features were characterized, and comparisons were made between 2006 and 2016 to assess temporal changes in asthma therapy, health care resource utilization, and outcomes.

RESULTS: In 2016, prevalent use of controller therapy was 5.2% (any-use population) and 0.8% (high-use population) of the population aged 18 to 40 years. In the any-use population, the use of long-acting β2 -agonists in monotherapy, and inhaled corticosteroids decreased (1.7% and 40.3% in 2016, respectively), whereas the use of fixed-dose combinations increased (56.4%). In both populations, visits to respiratory or hospital physicians and pulmonary function testing increased with time, in parallel to a decreasing number of general practitioner visits; in addition, oral corticosteroid use and incidence of emergency room visits increased. However, asthma hospitalizations and mortality remained low in both populations.

CONCLUSIONS: Changes in persistent asthma care included replacement of inhaled corticosteroids by fixed-dose combinations, decreased use of long-acting β2 -agonists as a monotherapy, and increased involvement of secondary care physicians. In parallel, despite low figures for hospital admissions and mortality, overall use of oral corticosteroids and incidence of emergency room visits have increased over the last decade.