Reliever salbutamol use as a measure of exacerbation risk in chronic obstructive pulmonary disease

BMC Pulmonary Medicine

Table 3 Number of patients reporting <2, ≥2, ≥6, or ≥10 inhalations/day in the week preceding the 2-month visit by treatment group

Mean reliever use (inhalations/day)	BUD/FORM (n = 349)	FORM (n = 325)	P value^a
Patients with cut-point inhalations/day, n (%)
<2	114 (32.7)	79 (24.3)	0.017
≥2	235 (67.3)	246 (75.7)	0.017
≥6	111 (31.8)	136 (41.8)	0.007
≥10	27 (7.7)	65 (20.0)	<0.001

Patient n values are cumulative (i.e. all patients in the ≥10 group are also in the ≥2 and ≥6 groups) and represent the number of patients remaining in the analysis for the week before the 2-month visit
BUD budesonide, FORM formoterol
^aP-values are for the analysis of BUD/FORM versus FORM

ISSN: 1471-2466