Clinical remission in severe asthma with biologic therapy: an analysis from the UK Severe Asthma Registry.

BACKGROUND: Novel biologic therapies have revolutionised the management of severe asthma with more ambitious treatment aims. Here we analyse the definition of clinical remission as a suggested treatment goal and consider the characteristics associated with clinical remission in a large, real-world severe asthma cohort. METHODS: This was a retrospective analysis of severe asthma patients registered in the UK Severe Asthma Registry (UKSAR) who met strict national access criteria for biologics. Patients had a pre-biologics baseline assessment and annual review. The primary definition of clinical remission applied included Asthma Control Questionnaire (ACQ)-5 <1.5 and no oral corticosteroids for disease control and forced expiratory volume in 1 s above lower limit of normal or no more than 100 mL less than baseline. RESULTS: 18.3% of patients achieved the primary definition of remission. The adjusted odds of remission on biologic therapy were 7.44 (95% CI 1.73-31.95)-fold higher in patients with type 2 (T2)-high biomarkers. The adjusted odds of remission were lower in patients who were female (OR 0.61, 95% CI 0.45-0.93), obese (OR 0.49, 95% CI 0.24-0.65) or had ACQ-5 ≥1.5 (OR 0.19, 95% CI 0.12-0.31) pre-biologic therapy. The likelihood of remission reduced by 14% (95% CI 0.76-0.97) for every 10-year increase in disease duration. 12-21% of the cohort attained clinical remission depending on the definition applied; most of those who did not achieve remission failed to meet multiple criteria. CONCLUSIONS: 18.3% of patients achieved the primary definition of clinical remission. Remission was more likely in T2-high biomarker patients with shorter duration of disease and less comorbidity. Further research on the optimum time to commence biologics in severe asthma is required.

Asthma control during the year after bronchial thermoplasty.

BACKGROUND: Bronchial thermoplasty is a bronchoscopic procedure to reduce the mass of airway smooth muscle and attenuate bronchoconstriction. We examined the effect of bronchial thermoplasty on the control of moderate or severe persistent asthma. METHODS: We randomly assigned 112 subjects who had been treated with inhaled corticosteroids and long-acting beta2-adrenergic agonists (LABA) and in whom asthma control was impaired when the LABA were withdrawn to either bronchial thermoplasty or a control group. The primary outcome was the frequency of mild exacerbations, calculated during three scheduled 2-week periods of abstinence from LABA at 3, 6, and 12 months. Airflow, airway responsiveness, asthma symptoms, the number of symptom-free days, use of rescue medication, and scores on the Asthma Quality of Life Questionnaire (AQLQ) and the Asthma Control Questionnaire (ACQ) were also assessed. RESULTS: The mean rate of mild exacerbations, as compared with baseline, was reduced in the bronchial-thermoplasty group but was unchanged in the control group (change in frequency per subject per week, -0.16+/-0.37 vs. 0.04+/-0.29; P=0.005). At 12 months, there were significantly greater improvements in the bronchial-thermoplasty group than in the control group in the morning peak expiratory flow (39.3+/-48.7 vs. 8.5+/-44.2 liters per minute), scores on the AQLQ (1.3+/-1.0 vs. 0.6+/-1.1) and ACQ (reduction, 1.2+/-1.0 vs. 0.5+/-1.0), the percentage of symptom-free days (40.6+/-39.7 vs. 17.0+/-37.9), and symptom scores (reduction, 1.9+/-2.1 vs. 0.7+/-2.5) while fewer puffs of rescue medication were required. Values for airway responsiveness and forced expiratory volume in 1 second did not differ significantly between the two groups. Adverse events immediately after treatment were more common in the bronchial-thermoplasty group than in the control group but were similar during the period from 6 weeks to 12 months after treatment. CONCLUSIONS: Bronchial thermoplasty in subjects with moderate or severe asthma results in an improvement in asthma control. (ClinicalTrials.gov number, NCT00214526 [ClinicalTrials.gov].).