Asthma in older adults: observations from the epidemiology and natural history of asthma: outcomes and treatment regimens (TENOR) study.

BACKGROUND: The Epidemiology and Natural History of Asthma: Outcomes and Treatment Regimens (TENOR) was a 3-year, multicenter, observational study of 4,756 patients 6 years or older with severe or difficult-to-treat asthma by physician evaluation. More than 280 pulmonologist and allergist sites across the United States participated.
OBJECTIVE: To compare health care utilization (HCU), medication use, asthma control, and quality of life (QoL) in older (> or =65 years; n = 566) and younger (18-64 years; n = 2,912) adult patients in TENOR.
METHODS: Patients had to be under a physician's care for at least 1 year and have high medication use or HCU in the past year. Heavy smokers (> or =30 pack-years) and patients with cystic fibrosis were excluded.
RESULTS: Although older patients in TENOR had worse lung function as measured by decreased percent predicted forced expiratory volume in 1 second (FEV1) (P < .001), they had significantly lower HCU compared with younger patients. They also had higher use of inhaled corticosteroids and better QoL than younger patients. Older patients reported fewer problems controlling their asthma (P < .001) but reported worse communication with their physicians (P = .02).
CONCLUSIONS: Older patients in TENOR appeared to do better than younger patients, despite having worse lung function. Older patients in TENOR may have received more aggressive care than older asthmatic patients in other studies, based on a higher use of inhaled and oral corticosteroids. Whether differences in treatment or disease influenced other physiologic or inflammatory outcomes that contribute to the disconnect between HCU and FEV1 awaits further study.