@article{Astrand_A-2023_162378,
title = {Effect of COVID-19 on Bronchiectasis Exacerbation Rates: A Retrospective US Insurance Claims Study},
author = {Astrand, A. and Kiddle, S. and Siva ganesh mudedla, R. and Porwal, S. and Chafekar, K. and Agrawal, S. and Seminario, C. and Chalmers, J. and Psallidas, I.},
month = {nov},
year = {2023},
abstract = {Rationale: Bronchiectasis is a chronic, progressive disease of bronchial dilation, inflammation, and scarring leading to impaired mucociliary clearance and increased susceptibility to infection. Identified causes include previous severe respiratory infections. A small, single-center UK study demonstrated a reduction in bronchiectasis exacerbations during the first year of the COVID-19 pandemic. No studies have been conducted in a US (commercially insured) cohort to date. Objective: To explore the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on the frequency of exacerbations in a large cohort of commercially insured US patients with bronchiectasis by testing the hypothesis that US patients with bronchiectasis had fewer exacerbations during the pandemic. Methods: This retrospective observational cohort study used health insurance claims data from Optum’s deidentified Clinformatics® Data Mart Database, which included US patients and their covered dependents. Eligible patients were aged 18 years with bronchiectasis; patients with other respiratory conditions were excluded. The main study cohort excluded patients with frequent asthma and/or chronic obstructive pulmonary disease diagnoses. The primary objective was to compare the bronchiectasis exacerbation rate prior to and during the COVID-19 pandemic. Results: The median number of exacerbations per patient per year decreased significantly from the year prior to the COVID-19 pandemic to the first year of the pandemic (1 vs. 0, P &lt; 0.01). More patients had zero exacerbations during the first year of the pandemic than the year prior (57% vs. 24%, McNemar’s chi-squared = 122.56, P &lt;0.01). Conclusions: In a U.S. population-based study of patients with ICD codes for bronchiectasis, the rate of exacerbations during year 1 of the COVID-19 pandemic was reduced compared with the 2-year time period preceding the pandemic. Primary Source of Funding (if any): AstraZeneca (Cambridge, UK).},
journal = {Annals of the American Thoracic Society},
publisher = {ATS journals},
url = {https://doi.org/10.1513/AnnalsATS.202211-944OC},
}
