Severe Asthma Management, Patient Pathway, and Disease Burden in Russia: Country Results From Multi-Country Retrospective Cross-Sectional Study
Abstract Background Severe asthma is a poorly controlled disease in Russia which leads to significant healthcare resource use and costs. However, little is known about its burden and management in a real clinical practice in Russia. Here we report the results obtained in the Russian population during an international cross-sectional study. Methods The study comprised two phases: in Phase I data were collected retrospectively from medical records, while Phase II was a cross-sectional collection of patient-reported outcomes and up-to-date data. For Phase I, adult patients with severe asthma according to ERS/ATS criteria were enrolled. Phase I patients were enrolled into Phase II if they signed a written consent form. Data on demographics, history of asthma and comorbidities, treatment approach, and healthcare resource utilization were obtained in both phases. In Phase II, asthma control and health-related quality of life (HRQoL) were also evaluated. Results A total of 315 patients were included in Phase I of the study, 106 (33.6%) of them entered Phase II of the study. The study population included more female (n=211, 67.0%) than male patients (n=104, 33.0%). Majority of subjects were either obese (n=103, 39.8%) or overweight (n=94, 36.3%). The most common comorbidity was cardiovascular disease (n=217, 71.4%), followed by chronic respiratory disease (n=198, 68.8%), including COPD and allergies. Mean (SD) age at diagnosis of asthma and severe asthma were 42.9 (16.0) and 53.1 (13.2) years, respectively. There were 268 (85.1%) patients who had at least one exacerbation during last 12 months. Most subjects had only one blood eosinophil count in the last 12 months (n=143, 81.3%). Mean (SD) FEV1 was 56.9 (20.4) % predicted. The mean (SD) last serum IgE/(RAST) value was 254.3 (249.7) ng/mL. Asthma management was generally in line with guidelines. Most patients had poorly controlled asthma according to the ACT and impaired HRQoL. Conclusions In Russia, severe asthma patients had poor disease control, high hospital admission rates and multiple comorbidities. Eosinophil and IgE level measurements are not considered routine tests which might be a barrier for appropriate phenotyping and treatment selection, including prescription of biologics in course of disease management.