Age, Gender, Disease Severity Impact Adherence to Long-Term PAP Therapy More Than Previously Thought

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  • Million-patient study reveals gaps in long-term therapy adherence among various sub-populations
  • Study helps sleep specialists identify which populations generally need more clinical support

DALLAS--(BUSINESS WIRE)-- ResMed (NYSE: RMD, ASX: RMD) today revealed several demographic and clinical factors affect adherence to PAP (positive airway pressure) therapy, according to a study it presented at the American Thoracic Society's ATS 2019 International Conference.

The study found significant differences in one-year adherence between people of different ages and disease severity levels:

  • Men with sleep apnea are 8.5 percentage points more likely to stay adherent on PAP therapy than women.
  • People over age 60 were 7.3 percentage points more adherent than the entire study cohort (77.7% vs. 70.4%).
  • People with self-reported severe sleep apnea were 78% adherent at the one-year mark, compared to 70.5% of those with self-reported moderate sleep apnea, and 65.2% of those with mild sleep apnea.

“Sleep specialists, pulmonologists, and primary care physicians should heed these results and ensure that their younger, female, and more mildly diagnosed patients have the proper supports to stay on therapy,” said Adam Benjafield, a study coauthor and ResMed’s vice president of Medical Affairs. “Regardless of why these gaps exist, we know they do, signaling the need to keep in close contact with patients in these populations.”

About the study

medXcloud, a ResMed-assembled group of healthcare key opinion leaders, conducted the study, which examined de-identified data of 1,063,870 U.S. PAP users from ResMed’s world-leading remote monitoring network, AirView. PAP users must have also been registered for the myAir patient engagement tool.

“Overall, we see encouragingly high long-term adherence rates across all subgroups, compared to most other chronic medical therapies,” said Benjafield. “Sleep apnea is a chronic disease without a cure; therefore, staying adherent on PAP through the years is critical to preventing apneas, maintaining your good sleep and overall health.”

About ResMed

At ResMed (NYSE: RMD, ASX: RMD) we pioneer innovative solutions that treat and keep people out of the hospital, empowering them to live healthier, higher-quality lives. Our cloud-connected medical devices transform care for people with sleep apnea, COPD and other chronic diseases. Our comprehensive out-of-hospital software platforms support the professionals and caregivers who help people stay healthy in the home or care setting of their choice. By enabling better care, we improve quality of life, reduce the impact of chronic disease and lower costs for consumers and healthcare systems in more than 120 countries. To learn more, visit ResMed.com and follow @ResMed.

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Source: ResMed

Released May 19, 2019