Clinical and inflammatory characteristics at baseline, by response to OCS (ΔACQ6/ΔFeNO/ΔFEV1)
| Outcome | All asthma | Non-Responders | Responders# | p-valueƒ |
| Subjects n | 54 | 29 | 25 | |
| Age years (range) | 53.6 (21–78) | 54.1 (21–78) | 52.4 (24–72) | 0.693 |
| BMI kg·m−2 | 30.7±6.4 | 30.1±6.8 | 31.5±6.2 | 0.451 |
| Male n (%) | 23 (41.8) | 13 (45) | 10 (40) | 0.721 |
| Pre B2 FEV1 % predicted | 82 [69, 89] | 87 [74, 94] | 78 [65, 85] | 0.038 |
| Pre B2 FVC % predicted | 90 [78, 99] | 88 [79, 100] | 92 [78, 99] | 0.901 |
| Pre B2 FEV1/FVC % | 72 [64, 77] | 74 [68, 82] | 70 [60, 74] | 0.015 |
| ACQ6 med [IQR] | 0.9 [0.3, 1.6] | 0.7 [0.2, 1] | 1.3 [0.5, 2] | 0.006 |
| Airway hyperresponsiveness n (%) | 30 (55) | 10 (35) | 20 (80) | 0.001 |
| PD15 med [IQR] | 4.9 [2.9, 10.5] | 5.5 [1.0, 6.4] | 4.3 [2.9, 10.5] | 0.984 |
| Dose response slope %fall/mL med [IQR] | 1.4 [0.5, 3.7] | 0.7 [0.4, 2.1] | 2.6 [1.4, 4.2] | 0.001 |
| Severe asthma n (%) | 22 (40) | 9 (31) | 13 (52) | 0.118 |
| Ex-smokers n (%) | 21 (38) | 10 (35) | 10 (40) | 0.675 |
| Pack-years med [IQR] | 3 [1, 20] | 3 [0, 20] | 2 [1, 20] | 0.849 |
| ICS use n (%) | 43 (78) | 24 (83) | 16 (64) | 0.117 |
| ICS+LABA n (%) | 38 (70) | 22 (76) | 16 (64) | 0.341 |
| OCS cumulative dose§ in 2 yrs mg med [IQR] | 400 [238, 675] | 350 [290, 562] | 495 [150, 750] | 0.877 |
| Non-eosinophilic asthma¶ n (%) | 21 (38) | 15 (52) | 6 (24) | 0.037 |
| Eosinophilic asthma n (%) | 31 (56) | 12 (41) | 19 (76) | 0.010 |
| FeNO ppb | 22.5 [13.1, 37.4] | 15.2 [8.7, 27.3] | 30 [18.5, 71.8] | 0.002 |
| Induced sputum median [IQR] | ||||
| CLC mRNA+ | 2.1 [0.4, 9.8] | 1 [0.3, 6.4] | 6.1 [0.6, 11.5] | 0.157 |
| CPA3 mRNA | 1.6 [0.4, 5.9] | 1.1 [0.2, 2.1] | 2.8 [0.8, 8.2] | 0.025 |
| DNASEIL3 mRNA | 1.2 [0.4, 3.9] | 1.1 [0.4, 2.7] | 1.4 [0.9, 4.2] | 0.263 |
| IL-1β mRNA | 0.7 [0.5, 1.2] | 0.7 [0.4, 0.9] | 0.7 [0.5, 1.2] | 0.251 |
| ALPL mRNA | 0.9 [0.4, 2.1] | 0.7 [0.4, 1.7] | 1.4 [0.6, 2.1] | 0.263 |
| CXCR2 mRNA | 0.8 [0.5, 1.5] | 0.9 [0.5, 1.5] | 0.7 [0.4, 1.7] | 0.777 |
| Eosinophils % | 4.5 [1.3,12.8] | 2 [0.8, 6] | 10.8 [2.5, 28.3] | 0.004 |
| Blood median [IQR] | ||||
| Eosinophils ×109·L−1 | 0.3 [0.2,0.4] | 0.2 [0.1, 0.3] | 0.4 [0.2, 0.4] | 0.001 |
Data are presented as mean±sd, unless otherwise stated. p-values in bold are statistically significant. ACQ6: six-item Asthma Control Questionnaire; FeNO: exhaled nitric oxide fraction; FEV1: forced expiratory volume in 1 s; FVC: forced vital capacity; Med: median; PD15: provocation dose; ICS: inhaled corticosteroid; OCS: oral corticosteroid; ppb: parts per billion. #: Responders=ΔACQ6≥0.5 or ΔFeNO (≥20%↓ if V1 FeNO≥50 ppb or ≥10 ppb↓ if V1<50 ppb) or ΔFEV1≥12% and 200 mL); ¶: non-eosinophilic asthma defined by sputum eosinophils <3%, eosinophilic asthma defined by sputum eosinophils ≥3%, +: mRNA data are expressed as normalised result, calculated using 2−ΔΔCt relative to β-actin and the mean of the baseline visit.§: Prednisone equivalents. ƒ: p-values represent differences between non-responders and responders.