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Background: Elevated blood eosinophil (EOS) count is a risk factor for future exacerbation in adults with persistent asthma. We investigated whether a relationship also exists between EOS and healthcare utilization (HRU) and cost in these patients. Methods: We conducted a retrospective cohort study using claims data on commercial and Medicare Advantage health plan adults (age≥18 years) who met the HEDIS persistent asthma criteria for 2 consecutive years during 2007-2012 and had a EOS determination at baseline; the index date was January 1 of the 3 rd year. Future (1-year post-index) asthma-related HRU and cost were described and compared between baseline EOS levels using different cut-off points (150, 300, or 400 cells/µL). Results: The study included 37,830 subjects. Patients with higher baseline EOS count at all cut-off points had higher frequency of future asthma-related office visits, emergency department (ED) visits, inpatients, and pharmacy fills. Asthma-related total, medical, and pharmacy costs were all higher in patients with higher EOS (Table). There is a trend toward higher future HRU and cost with increasing baseline EOS. Conclusions: Higher future disease burden was observed in asthma patients with increasing EOS count, consistent with previous findings that elevated EOS is a risk factor for future asthma exacerbations. |
