Inhaler technique education in elderly patients with asthma or COPD: impact on disease exacerbations-a protocol for a single-blinded randomised controlled trial

• Autor(a) principal: Maricoto, Tiago
• Data de Publicação: 2019
• Outros Autores: Correia de Sousa, Jaime, Taborda-Barata, Luís
• Tipo de documento: Artigo
• Idioma: eng
• Título da fonte: Repositório Científico de Acesso Aberto de Portugal (Repositórios Cientìficos)
• Texto Completo: http://hdl.handle.net/1822/67301
• topic: Administration, Inhalation; Asthma; Bronchodilator Agents; Disease Progression; Health Knowledge, Attitudes, Practice; Humans; Medication Adherence; Multicenter Studies as Topic; Pulmonary Disease, Chronic Obstructive; Quality of Life; Randomized Controlled Trials as Topic; Single-Case Studies as Topic; Nebulizers and Vaporizers; Patient Education as Topic; chronic obstructive pulmonary disease; Ciências Médicas::Medicina Básica; Science & Technology

Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease (COPD)and asthma affect more than 10% of the population. Most patients use their inhaler incorrectly, mainly the elderly, thereby becoming more susceptible to poor clinical control and exacerbations. Placebo device training is regarded as one of the best teaching methods, but there is scarce evidence to support it as the most effective one to improve major clinical outcomes. Our objective is to perform a single-blinded RCT to assess the impact of this education tool in these patients. Introduction Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease (COPD)and asthma affect more than 10% of the population. Most patients use their inhaler incorrectly, mainly the elderly, thereby becoming more susceptible to poor clinical control and exacerbations. Placebo device training is regarded as one of the best teaching methods, but there is scarce evidence to support it as the most effective one to improve major clinical outcomes. Our objective is to perform a single-blinded RCT to assess the impact of this education tool in these patients. Methods and analysis A multicentre single-blinded Randomised Controlled Trial (RCT) will be set up, comparing an inhaler education programme with a teach-to-goal placebo-device training versus usual care, with a 1-year follow-up, in patients above 65 years of age with asthma or COPD. Intervention will be provided at baseline, and after 3 and 6 months, with interim analysis at an intermediate time point. Exacerbation rates were set as primary outcomes, and quality of life, adherence rates, clinical control and respiratory function were chosen as secondary outcomes. A sample size of 146 participants (73 in each arm) was estimated as adequate to detect a 50% reduction in event rates. Two-sample proportions χ² test will be used to study primary outcome and subgroup analysis will be carried out according to major baseline characteristics