Abstract: We believe the interpretation that baseline biomarkers such as blood eosinophil count (BEC) and fractional exhaled nitric oxide (FENO ) are more predictive of response than remission may be misleading. In practice, response and remission represent a continuum: from “no response” through “response” and then “remission” [4]. Using data from their tables 1 and S1, we calculated univariable odds ratios, which suggest that both BEC and FENO predict response and remission to similar extents (figure 1). We also re-analysed their table 3 using chi-square tests for trend. These showed no significant differences in trends for BEC (p=0.26) or FENO (p=0.58) between patients achieving response versus remission, indicating comparable associations. Without access to individual-level data, we could not analyse biomarkers continuously, but the reported medians suggest minimal differences. Could the authors clarify the statistical methods behind their conclusions
