By Amy Orciari Herman
Edited by David G. Fairchild, MD, MPH, and Lorenzo Di Francesco, MD, FACP, FHM
Combination therapy with a long-acting beta-agonist (LABA) plus inhaled corticosteroid is associated with better outcomes than an LABA alone in older adults with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, according to a retrospective cohort study in JAMA.
Using population healthcare databases, researchers in Ontario matched some 8700 adults aged 66 or older who began combination therapy for COPD with 3200 who began an LABA alone. Overall, 28% had asthma-COPD overlap syndrome.
At 5 years’ follow-up, death or hospitalization for COPD had occurred in 57.5% of the combination-therapy group and 61.2% of the LABA-alone group — a small but significant difference. The reduction in risk with combination therapy was greater in patients who had asthma-COPD overlap syndrome and in those who weren’t using an inhaled long-acting anticholinergic.