Baseline characteristics
| Active comparator population* | Entire, unmatched population | |||
| RASi users | Thiazide users | RASi users | Non-users | |
| n=3029 | n=3029 | n=10 742 | n=28 120 | |
| Variables n (%) | ||||
| GOLD stage† | ||||
| GOLD 1 | 162 (5.3) | 175 (5.8) | 790 (7.4) | 2008 (7.1) |
| GOLD 2 | 1299 (42.9) | 1269 (41.9) | 4601 (42.8) | 10 780 (38.3) |
| GOLD 3 | 1150 (38.0) | 1122 (37.0) | 3389 (31.5) | 8993 (32.0) |
| GOLD 4 | 418 (13.8) | 463 (15.3) | 1028 (9.6) | 3840 (13.7) |
| Missing data | 0 (0) | 0 (0) | 934 (8.7) | 2499 (8.9) |
| FEV1, median (IQR) | 48.3 (36.0–63.0) | 48.0 (35.0–62.0) | 52.0 (39.0–66.0) | 49.5 (36.0–64.0) |
| Age group | ||||
| <60 years | 350 (11.6) | 397 (13.1) | 1456 (13.6) | 7880 (28.0) |
| 60–68 years | 679 (22.4) | 664 (21.9) | 2652 (24.7) | 7141 (25.4) |
| 68–76 years | 991 (32.7) | 915 (30.2) | 3452 (32.1) | 6999 (24.9) |
| >76 years | 1009 (33.3) | 1053 (34.8) | 3182 (29.6) | 6100 (21.7) |
| Age, median (IQR) | 72.0 (65.5–78.1) | 72.3 (65.0–78.5) | 71.0 (64.5–77.4) | 67.0 (58.8–74.8) |
| Sex | ||||
| Female | 2092 (69.1) | 2091 (69.0) | 5771 (53.7) | 15 564 (55.3) |
| Male | 937 (30.9) | 938 (31.0) | 4971 (46.3) | 12 556 (44.7) |
| BMI group | ||||
| <18.5 | 281 (9.3) | 265 (8.7) | 638 (5.9) | 3108 (11.1) |
| 18.5–25 | 1166 (38.5) | 1111 (36.7) | 3265 (30.4) | 11 129 (39.6) |
| 25–30 | 904 (29.8) | 965 (31.9) | 3131 (29.1) | 7386 (26.3) |
| 30–35 | 444 (14.7) | 463 (15.3) | 1847 (17.2) | 2831 (10.1) |
| >35 | 234 (7.7) | 225 (7.4) | 955 (8.9) | 1259 (4.5) |
| Missing data | 0 (0) | 0 (0) | 906 (8.4) | 2407 (8.6) |
| BMI, median (IQR) | 25.0 (21.0–29.0) | 25.0 (22.0–29.0) | 26.0 (22.5–30.0) | 24.0 (21.0–27.8) |
| Smoking status | ||||
| Previous/never smoker | 2072 (68.4) | 2.068 (68.3) | 6097 (56.8) | 13 583 (48.3) |
| Current smoker | 957 (31.6) | 961 (31.7) | 2923 (27.2) | 9801 (34.9) |
| Missing data | 0 (0) | 0 (0) | 1722 (16.0) | 4736 (16.8) |
| No exacerbations 12 months prior | ||||
| 0 | 1796 (59.3) | 1759 (58.1) | 6887 (64.1) | 17 769 (63.2) |
| 1 | 235 (7.8) | 257 (8.5) | 815 (7.6) | 2202 (7.8) |
| >2 | 998 (32.9) | 1013 (33.4) | 3040 (28.3) | 8149 (29.0) |
| Charlson Comorbidity Index group‡ | ||||
| Mildly ill | 454 (15.0) | 467 (15.4) | 1499 (14.0) | 7705 (27.4) |
| Moderately ill | 1412 (46.6) | 1397 (46.1) | 4815 (44.8) | 13 065 (46.5) |
| Severely ill | 1163 (38.4) | 1165 (38.5) | 4428 (41.2) | 7350 (26.1) |
| Prescription 12 months prior (yes) | ||||
| LABA | 2531 (83.6) | 2523 (83.3) | 8361 (77.8) | 21 390 (76.1) |
| LAMA | 2355 (77.7) | 2407 (79.5) | 7684 (71.5) | 19 454 (69.2) |
| ICS | 2264 (74.7) | 2324 (76.7) | 7412 (69.0) | 19 401 (69.0) |
| Statins | 1465 (48.4) | 1050 (34.7) | 5553 (51.7) | 6497 (23.1) |
| Antihypertensives 12 months prior (yes) | ||||
| Calcium channel blockers | 1205 (39.8) | 1013 (33.4) | 4417 (41.1) | 4323 (15.4) |
| Beta-1 selective blockers | 725 (23.9) | 609 (20.1) | 2777 (25.9) | 3259 (11.6) |
| Non-selective beta blockers | 42 (1.4) | 82 (2.7) | 185 (1.7) | 535 (1.9) |
| Mixed alpha-beta blockers | 50 (1.7) | 14 (0.5) | 219 (2.0) | 109 (0.4) |
| Alpha blockers | 20 (0.7) | 11 (0.4) | 98 (0.9) | 86 (0.3) |
*Propensity-score matched population.
†Severity of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease based on obstruction stage, Global Initiative for Chronic Obsructive Lung Disease (GOLD) 1: FEV1 >80% = mild, GOLD 2: 50% <FEV1 <80%=moderate, GOLD 3: 30% <FEV1<50% = severe, GOLD, FEV1 <30% = very severe (1).
‡Group I: 0–2 points=mildly ill, group II: 3–4 points=moderately ill, group III: >5 points: severely ill.35
BMI, body mass index; FEV1, forced expiratory volume in 1 s; ICS, inhaled corticosteroids; LABA, long-acting β2-agonists; LAMA, long-acting muscarinic antagonists; RAS, renin–angiotensin–system inhibitor; RASi, RAS inhibitors.