Tuesday, May 27, 2008

Review suggests asthma drugs safe, effective in COPD

From Reuters:
Previous research has linked a class of asthma drugs known as long-acting beta agonists to increased risk of adverse respiratory-related events or death in patients with COPD (chronic obstructive pulmonary disease).

However, a report published this month indicates this may not be the case.

The new report suggests that long-acting beta agonists have beneficial effects in patients with moderate-to-severe COPD and do not appear to increase the risk of respiratory deaths. Examples of long-acting beta agonists used to treat asthma and other respiratory conditions include Advair, Serevent, Foradil and Symbicort.

In the study, Dr. Gustavo J. Rodrigo, from Hospital Central de las Fuerzas Armadas, Montevideo, Uruguay and colleagues pooled data from 27 randomized clinical trials that compared two long-acting beta agonists with placebo or with two long-acting "anticholinergic" asthma drugs (for example, Spiriva) in patients with moderate to severe COPD. ...more

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