Fully adjusted analysis of the association between inhaled corticosteroid (ICS) use and lung cancer, applying five different exposure definitions with Akaike Information Criterion (AIC) values: multivariable regression#
| Exposure metrics | Hazard ratio (95% CI) | p-value | AIC |
| Time-dependent ICS exposure | 0.70 (0.61–0.80) | <0.001 | 19 132 |
| Cumulative years of use¶ | 0.89 (0.83–0.95) | <0.001 | 19 141 |
| Cumulative dose¶ | 0.83 (0.72–0.97) | 0.0201 | 19 149 |
| Recency-weighted duration of use | 0.74 (0.66–0.82) | <0.001 | 19 116 |
| Recency-weighted cumulative dose | 0.57 (0.43–0.74) | <0.001 | 19 133 |
#: multivariable regression analysis was adjusted for the following covariates: age, sex, region, income quintile, inpatient hospitalisation, number of physician encounters, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease hospitalisation, year of cohort entry, Charlson Comorbidity Index score, total number of prescriptions received, oral glucocorticoid use and time-dependent statin exposure; ¶: measured as a continuous variable.