ABSTRACT
BACKGROUND: Severe asthma treatment with oral corticosteroids (OCS) added to inhaled corticosteroids and a long-acting ß2-agonist (ICS-LABA) may result in more treatment burden and increased adverse effects. OBJECTIVE AND METHODS: This ambispective multicenter observational study aimed at describing the clinical burden in patients with severe asthma on stable high-dose ICS-LABA who received OCS during ≥6 months (maintenance group) or ≥2 cycles in the previous 12 months (bursts group). Data collection comprised a retrospective 12-month baseline period and 2 follow-up visits at 3 and 6 months. RESULTS: Eighty-nine patients were evaluable (30 on maintenance, 59 on bursts). At baseline, mean (SD) daily prednisone equivalent exposure in the total population was 24.6 (14.7) mg: 13.8 (9.4) mg on maintenance and 29.9 (14.3) mg on bursts. During the 6-month follow-up period, mean (SD) daily dose in the total cohort was 22.5 (18.8) mg: 17.2 (18.6) mg on maintenance and 28.4 (20.6) mg on bursts. The overall annual severe exacerbations rate during the 12-month baseline period was 2.05 per patient-year and 1.5 per patient-year over the 6-month follow-up, and frequency of hospitalizations and emergency department visits were similar on both maintenance and bursts use. CONCLUSIONS: Results show a suboptimal control of severe asthma despite such high doses of OCS and persistence of disease burden regardless of the prescribing pattern in maintenance or bursts. There is therapeutic inertia to continue using OCS despite the increased risk of adverse effects and the availability of biologics.