Fluticasone propionate-salmeterol versus inhaled corticosteroids plus montelukast: outcomes study in pediatric patients with asthma

ticasone propionate-salmeterol versus inhaled corticosteroids plus montelukast: outcomes study in pediatric patients with asthma Original Research (1597) Total Article Views Authors: Stanford RH, Shah M, D'Souza AO Published Date December 2012 Volume 2013:6 Pages 1 - 10 DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.2147/JAA.S34582 Received: 02 June 2012 Accepted: 03 November 2012 Published: 28 December 2012 Richard H Stanford,1 Manan Shah,2 Anna O D'Souza2 1GlaxoSmithKline, Research Triangle Park, Durham, NC, 2Xcenda, Palm Harbor, FL, USA Background: The purpose of this study (GSK ADA111194) was to compare asthma-related health care utilization and costs associated with fluticasone propionate (an inhaled corticosteroid [ICS]) and salmeterol (a long-acting beta-agonist) in a single inhalation device (fluticasone propionate-salmeterol) versus the combination of ICS + montelukast in the treatment of pediatric patients with asthma. Methods: This was a retrospective, observational cohort study using a large health insurance claims database spanning January 1, 2000 to January 31, 2008. The target population was patients aged 4–11 years with at least one pharmacy claim for fluticasone propionate-salmeterol, any ICS, or montelukast during the study period. The date of first claim for the medication of interest was deemed the index date. Patients were required to be continuously eligible to receive health care services one year prior to and 30 days after the index date, and have at least one claim with an ICD-9-CM code for asthma (493.xx) in the one-year pre-index period. Patients with prescriptions for fluticasone propionate-salmeterol, ICS + montelukast, or long-acting beta-agonists during the pre-index period were excluded. Patients were matched on a 1:1 basis according to three variables, ie, pre-index use of oral corticosteroids, ICS, and presence of pre-index respiratory-related hospitalizations/emergency department visits. The risk of asthma-related hospitalization, combined hospitalization/emergency department visit, and monthly asthma-related costs were assessed using multivariate methods. Results: Of the 3001 patients identified, 2231 patients were on fluticasone propionate-salmeterol and 770 were on ICS + montelukast. After matching, there were 747 pairs of fluticasone propionate-salmeterol and ICS + montelukast patients, which were well matched for baseline characteristics. Patients who started fluticasone propionate-salmeterol compared with patients on ICS + montelukast had a significantly (P < 0.02) lower rate of asthma-related hospitalizations (0.3% versus 3.5%) and asthma-related hospitalizations/emergency department visits (3.5% versus 5.7%). After controlling for baseline and patient characteristics, fluticasone propionate-salmeterol users were associated with a significantly lower risk of an asthma-related hospitalization (adjusted hazard ratio 0.039; 95% confidence interval 0.004–0.408) or hospitalization/emergency department visit (hazard ratio 0.441; 95