Biologics for chronic rhinosinusitis with nasal polyps: Economics and ethics.

Biologics have recently been approved for use in chronic rhinosinusitis with nasal polyps patients. While effective in controlling disease on subjective and objective short-term outcome measures, limited data suggest that biologics have the potential to be used long term. The current wholesale acquisition costs for biologics are quite high. Widespread, prolonged use of these medications may create a large burden to our healthcare system. Cost-effectiveness analyses, particularly for specific patient cohorts, are needed to determine appropriate use of these medications. The ethics of patient preference of various treatment options, counseling regarding side effect profiles, and healthcare economics also need to be addressed.

Treatment practices for aspirin-exacerbated respiratory disease: analysis of a national insurance claims database.

BACKGROUND: Aspirin-exacerbated respiratory disease (AERD) is the triad of asthma, nasal polyposis, and sensitivity to cyclooxygenase-1 inhibitors. Treatment options include medical management, surgical intervention, and aspirin desensitization (AsaD). METHODS: AERD patients were identified using the MarketScan Database from 2009 to 2015. Patients were included using International Classification of Diseases, 9th edition (ICD-9) codes for asthma, nasal polyposis, and drug allergy. Treatments were determined by Current Procedural Terminology (CPT) codes for drug desensitization and endonasal procedures. Geographic trends and timing of interventions between those exposed and not exposed to desensitization were explored. RESULTS: A total of 5628 patients met inclusion criteria for AERD, with mean age 46 years, 60% female; 395 (7%) underwent AsaD and 2171 (39%) underwent sinus surgery. Among patients who were desensitized, 229 (58%) underwent surgery, of whom 201 (88%) had surgery prior to AsaD (median [quartile 1, quartile 3]; 61 days [30, 208] prior to desensitization). For patients undergoing surgery following AsaD (n = 46), surgery was performed a median of 302 (163, 758) days after AsaD. Nineteen patients had multiple surgeries post-AsaD with median time between surgeries being 734 days (312, 1484); 261 patients were not desensitized to aspirin but did undergo multiple surgeries, with the median of the median time between surgeries being 287 days (15, 617), which is shorter than for patients post-AsaD (p < 0.001). CONCLUSION: A very small percentage of AERD patients undergo AsaD. Patients who had AsaD underwent surgery approximately 2 months prior to AsaD. Patients who underwent AsaD experienced an increased time between surgeries compared to patients who did not undergo AsaD.

Longitudinal progression of aspirin-exacerbated respiratory disease: analysis of a national insurance claims database.

BACKGROUND: Aspirin-exacerbated respiratory disease (AERD) is a recalcitrant inflammatory disorder defined by asthma, nasal polyposis, and sensitivity to cyclooxygenase-1 inhibitors. The timeline and course of disease progression is unclear. METHODS: The Truven MarketScan Database, a large American health insurance claims repository, was queried to identify patients meeting criteria for AERD from 2009 to 2015. Included patients had associated International Classification of Diseases, 9th edition (ICD-9) codes consistent with all 3 components of AERD: asthma, nasal polyposis, and drug allergy. Patterns of disease onset and time to progression were analyzed. RESULTS: A total of 5628 patients were identified for study inclusion. Of the 3 components of AERD, 3303 patients (59%) were initially diagnosed with asthma, 1408 (25%) were initially diagnosed with nasal polyps, and 917 (16%) were first diagnosed with drug sensitivity. The most common (36%) sequence of diagnoses was asthma, followed by nasal polyps, followed by drug allergy. The median interval between diagnosis of upper or lower airway involvement (ie, nasal polyps and/or asthma) to recognition of drug sensitivity was 259 days (quartiles Q1 to Q3: 92 to 603 days). In patients with both asthma and nasal polyps diagnoses, the risk of developing drug sensitivity during the study time period was 6%. CONCLUSION: Upper and lower airway disease is often initially recognized in patients with AERD, whereas drug sensitivity presents month to years later. This delay may be due to the pathophysiology of AERD and disease progression or due to practice patterns in diagnostic testing and coding. Further work is warranted to identify these patients at early stages in their disease progression.

Utility of the LACE Scoring System in Predicting Readmission Following Tracheotomy and Laryngectomy.

In the current value-based health-care environment, 30-day unplanned hospital readmissions have been identified as a quality measure and an opportunity to help reduce health-care costs. The LACE Index Scoring Tool for Risk Assessment of Death and Readmission utilizes length of stay, acuity of admission, comorbidities, and emergency department visits to stratify patients into high and low risk of readmission. A retrospective chart review of 161 patients who underwent a tracheotomy or laryngectomy for head and neck indications at a tertiary care academic center demonstrated that the readmitted patient cohort was not statistically or clinically different from the nonreadmitted cohort when comparing LACE scores ( P = .789), length of hospital stay ( P = .237), discharge disposition ( P = .569), or insurance status ( P = .85). Addressing the problem of unplanned 30-day readmissions will likely require enhanced patient education, improved coordination of care, and further research.