Real-world Clinical Characteristics, Treatment Patterns, and Exacerbations in US Patients With Asthma Newly Treated With Omalizumab

Abstract Purpose The objective of this study was to examine patient characteristics, treatment patterns, and exacerbations among patients with asthma newly treated with omalizumab. Methods Data for this study were obtained from administrative claims and medical records. The index date was the date of the first claim for omalizumab. All patients had ≥12 months of continuous health plan eligibility before and after the index date. Demographic and clinical characteristics were obtained 12 months before the index date. Treatment patterns of asthma medications, including omalizumab, and asthma exacerbations were evaluated in the preindex and postindex periods. Findings The study included 1564 patients. Asthma-related medication use decreased from the preindex to the postindex periods (oral corticosteroids, 83.3%–66.4%, P P 2 -adrenergic agonists [LABAs], 6.6%–5.2%, P  = 0.009; ICS-LABA combination, 69.3%–64.3%, P P P Implications In this real-world analysis, patients newly initiating omalizumab therapy for allergic asthma used fewer concomitant asthma medications, while experiencing significant reductions in asthma exacerbations, especially hospitalization- and emergency department–specific exacerbations, from pre– to post–omalizumab treatment initiation periods.