Digital inhalers can help patients with asthma and healthcare professionals to track inhaler use and monitor maintenance medication adherence. touchRESPIRATORY were delighted to speak with Dr Giselle Mosnaim (NorthShore University HealthSystem, Evanston, IL, USA; University of Chicago Pritzker School of Medicine, Chicago, IL, USA) around the aims, eligibility, methodology and main findings of the CONNECT2 study, which compared digital inhalers with standard of care in patients with asthma.
The abstract ‘Relationship between medication adherence and self-assessment responses in patients with asthma.’ (Abstract number: 488) was presented at AAAAI 2023, February 24–27, 2022, #AAAAI2023.
Questions
- Â Â What did the CONNECT1 study teach us about the efficacy and safety of digital inhalers in the treatment of asthma? (0:26)
- Â Â What were the aims, eligibility and methodology of the CONNECT2 study? (1:32)
- Â Â What were the main findings and what have been the most important lessons learned? (2:25)
- Â Â How will these findings be used to inform future treatment decisions? (2:52)
Disclosures: Giselle Mosnaim discloses consulting for Novartis and has received grant/research support from Novartis, Glaxo-SmithKline, Sanofi-Regeneron, and Teva.
Support: Interview and filming supported by Touch Medical Media Ltd. Interview conducted by Atiya Henry.
Filmed in coverage of the American Academy of Allergy Asthma & Immunology Annual Meeting 2023.
Transcript:
My name is Giselle Mosnaim. I am an allergist immunologist in the Division of allergy immunology, department of Medicine at NorthShore University HealthSystem. And I’m also a clinical associate professor at the University of Chicago, Pritzker School of Medicine.
What did the CONNECT1 study teach us about the efficacy and safety of digital inhalers in the treatment of asthma? (0:26)
In the CONNECT1 study, participants either received a standard of care, so they either received their regular quick relief medications through a voucher program, or they received a digital quick relief inhaler that had the capabilities that we talked about, that every time they use their quick relief medication via Bluetooth a message is sent to their phone so they can track their quick relief medication use on the app. And this information is also sent to a health care professional dashboard. And what CONNECT1 demonstrated is that patient and physician monitoring of quick reliever use, decreased quick reliever use over time, and also demonstrated improved asthma control over time compared to standard of care.
What were the aims, eligibility and methodology of the CONNECT2 study? (1:32)
The CONNECT2 study participants had to be 13 years of age or older, had to have uncontrolled asthma defined as an ACT score of 18 or less, and had to be prescribed an inhaled corticosteroid, long acting bronchodilator as well as a quick reliever medication. And what happened is participants were either randomized in a 4:3 ratio to receive the digihaler, so they would get that digital inhaler ICS/LABA and the digital inhaler quick relief medication, or they would receive vouchers to receive the standard of care ICS/LABA and the standard of care quick reliever inhalers.
What were the main findings and what have been the most important lessons learned? (2:25)
In CONNECT2 as well as CONNECT1 we did demonstrate that participants using the maintenance and reliever digital inhaler system demonstrated improvements in asthma control compared to standard of care and also decreased use of short acting bronchodilators or quick relievers compared to the standard of care.
How will these findings be used to inform future treatment decisions? (2:52)
What is really important about this is that this really helps patients and health care professionals have a conversation about how a participant or how a patient is taking care of their asthma. Many times patients don’t actually realize how much quick reliever they’re using or that they’re missing doses of their controller medications. And they’re frustrated that they’re not feeling better. But when they can see objective data and how they’re taking their medications and they can also see objective data on inhaler technique, then we can counsel patients on improved adherence to their controller medications, less reliance on the quick relievers, make sure they’re having good technique. And we can overall improve asthma control and hopefully we can also decrease exacerbations and decrease reliance on oral steroids, which have a lot of side effects.
Subtitles and transcript are autogenerated
