OBJECTIVES: Hospital admissions and @entity341 ( @entity341 ) visits have traditionally been used to assess the strength of association between environmental exposures, such as air pollution, and @entity565 morbidity. In the current study, we evaluate the use of short-acting beta-agonist ( @entity6411 ) prescriptions as a surrogate marker for @entity565 exacerbation with respect to these more traditional markers. METHODS: Claims data for recipients covered by Illinois Medicaid with a diagnosis of @entity565 were obtained for fiscal-years 1996 through June 1998. Claims for short-acting bronchodilators and @entity565 -related @entity341 visits and hospital admissions for 31,140 adults were identified. The odds ratio for the association of either an @entity341 visit or hospital admission and an @entity6411 prescription was calculated for time lags ranging from -28 to +28 days. Individual-subject heterogeneity and seasonal effects were corrected for using the Mantel-Haenszel method. RESULTS: After adjustment for individual and seasonal effects, there was a significant positive association between @entity6411 prescriptions and @entity341 visits or hospital admissions for @entity565 on any single day. In addition, a significant positive association was also found between the @entity341 visits or hospital admissions occurring on the few days prior to an @entity6411 prescription. No significant relation was found (after adjusting for subject and seasonal effects) between prescriptions and admissions when an @entity6411 prescription date preceded that of a hospital admission or an @entity341 visit. CONCLUSIONS: A very strong and significant association between @entity341 visits or hospital admissions for @entity565 and @entity6411 prescriptions was observed, which suggests that @entity6411 prescription fills can be used as a marker for @entity565 morbidity. In addition, a temporal association exists between claims for @entity341 visits or hospital admissions for @entity565 and @entity6411 prescription claims when an @entity341 visit or hospital admission precedes the @entity6411 prescription.

Short-acting beta-agonist prescription fills as a marker for XXXX morbidity.

@entity565 :: ('MESH:D001249', 'Disease') :: ['asthma'] @entity341 :: ('MESH:D004630', 'Disease') :: ['emergency department', 'ED'] @entity6411 :: ('MESH:C046122', 'Chemical') :: ['SABA']
@entity565 :: (MESH:D001249,Disease) :: ['asthma']
