The economic impact of educational training assessed by the Handling Questionnaire with three inhalation devices in asthma and Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease patients

Roberto W Dal Negro1, Massimiliano Povero2 1National Centre for Respiratory Phamacoeconomics and Pharmacoepidemiology – CESFAR, Verona, 2AdRes Health Economics and Outcome Research, Torino, Italy Background: The usability of inhalation devices depends on several factors, eg, the drug to inhale, device handling, and patients’ training. Usability is then presumed to have economic consequences. Aim: To assess and compare the cost of patients’ training for proper usability of Breezhaler and Genuair (both dry powder inhalers) and Respimat (a soft mist inhaler) in asthma and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) outpatients. Methods: The acceptance and handling of the three devices were investigated by means of the Handling Questionnaire. The time spent in specific training for ensuring a proper actuation and the corresponding costs were also calculated. Linear and logistic regressions were used in order to investigate the factors influencing proper handling of the devices. A significance level of P