To assess how often adults receiving Veterans Affairs care for COPD and/or asthma were tested for α1-antitrypsin deficiency (AATD), and to examine factors associated with testing and augmentation therapy.
Approach:
Design and population: Retrospective cohort study using national VA electronic health records. The cohort included patients with at least two documented encounters for COPD, asthma, asthma-COPD overlap, or spirometry-confirmed airflow obstruction from January 2000 through December 2…
Measures: AATD testing was defined as at least one serum α1-antitrypsin measurement and/or genotype test. AATD was classified by serum concentration below 100 mg/dL, ZZ, SZ, or SS genotype, or an augmentation therapy prescription.
Analyses: The study evaluated testing frequency and sociodemographic and geographic factors associated with testing; among patients classified as having AATD, it assessed augmentation therapy prescriptions and associated characteristics.
Interpretation:
The supplied context describes the study rationale, design, population, and outcome definitions but does not provide study results.
Limitations:
The supplied article context ends before the results and does not report testing rates, treatment rates, or associations.
AATD classification included serum AAT below 100 mg/dL even without a qualifying genotype, so the study definition was broader than severe deficiency.
