Combo Treatment Cuts Asthma Attacks

Patients with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease using a bronchodilator with corticosteroid reduced the number of exacerbations, says a German study.

Dr. Peter Kardos of Maingau Hospital in Frankfurt and three associates treated patients with moderate to severe COPD from 92 respiratory centers across Germany. All had less than a 50-percent predicted lung function capability for their age group.

The researchers treated 487 patients with salmeterol, a long-acting bronchodilator, and gave 507 a combination therapy of salmeterol and fluticasone propionate, an inhaled corticosteroid. Of the total cohort, 792 patients completed all phases of the 44-week study.

In the combined therapy group 324 patients experienced moderate to severe exacerbations, as compared to 464 in the control group. The authors believe that this reduction in exacerbations is likely of clinical importance for patients with severe COPD.

Exacerbations are a major cause of disease-related problems, said Kardos. In particular, they greatly contribute to the decline of the health-related quality of life, increase symptoms and breathlessness, speed progression of the disease and increase the risk of mortality.

The findings are published in the Journal of Respiratory and Critical Care Medicine.