Department of Allergy, Immunology & Respiratory Medicine, The Alfred Hospital & Monash University, Commercial Rd., Melbourne, Victoria 3004, Australia.
Respir Med. 2012 Feb;106(2):223-9. doi: 10.1016/j.rmed.2011.09.012. Epub 2011 Oct 29.
Purchase of short-acting β(2)-agonist (SABA), but not anti-inflammatory asthma medication, is permitted in Australia without a doctor's prescription. This has been associated with worse asthma outcomes. We sought to compare the asthma outcomes between those purchasing SABA with and without a doctor's prescription.
Cross-sectional study, using stratified randomisation of pharmacies.
43 pharmacies in Victoria, Australia.
Up to 10 consecutive adults purchasing β(2)-agonists were recruited from each pharmacy, with 316 adults in total.
Participants underwent spirometry and questionnaires on respiratory health, asthma control, Quality of Life and medication adherence. Asthma severity was determined by GINA medication step. Regression analyses were performed that allowed for clustering by pharmacy.
Of 316 individuals recruited (65% participation rate), 191 (60%) purchased a β(2)-agonist with a prescription. Purchase of SABA without prescription was not associated with worse asthma outcomes or lung function. Mean (±SD) asthma control score (ACQ) was 1.65 ± 1.03; only 63 (20%) had well-controlled asthma (ACQ < 0.75). Anti-inflammatory asthma medication was owned by 188 (60%) of participants, of whom 157 (83%) reported using this in the last 7 days. There was no correlation between medication adherence scores and asthma control. Forty-seven participants (15%) had an FEV(1) below 80% predicted and did not own an anti-inflammatory asthma medication.
Purchase of SABA without prescription was not associated with worse asthma outcomes in Australia. Although many patients reported symptoms of asthma, this did not appear to be associated with reported adherence to anti-inflammatory asthma medication.
在澳大利亚，无需医生处方即可购买短效 β（2）-激动剂（SABA），但不能购买抗炎哮喘药物。这与更差的哮喘结果有关。我们试图比较有和没有医生处方购买 SABA 的哮喘结果。
使用药房分层随机化的横断面研究。
澳大利亚维多利亚州的 43 家药房。
每家药房连续招募了多达 10 名购买β（2）-激动剂的成年人，总共招募了 316 名成年人。
参与者接受了肺功能检查和呼吸健康、哮喘控制、生活质量和药物依从性的问卷调查。哮喘严重程度由 GINA 药物步骤确定。进行了回归分析，允许按药房进行聚类。
在招募的 316 名个体中（参与率为 65%），191 名（60%）购买了有处方的β（2）-激动剂。未经处方购买 SABA 与哮喘结果或肺功能无恶化相关。平均（±SD）哮喘控制评分（ACQ）为 1.65 ± 1.03；只有 63 名（20%）哮喘控制良好（ACQ < 0.75）。188 名（60%）参与者拥有抗炎哮喘药物，其中 157 名（83%）报告在过去 7 天内使用过该药物。药物依从性评分与哮喘控制之间没有相关性。47 名参与者（15%）FEV（1）低于预计值的 80%，并且没有拥有抗炎哮喘药物。
在澳大利亚，未经处方购买 SABA 与哮喘结果无恶化相关。尽管许多患者报告有哮喘症状，但这似乎与报告的抗炎哮喘药物依从性无关。
