Combination Therapy Reverses Resistance To Asthma Treatment

Main Category: Respiratory / Asthma
Article Date: 10 Sep 2008 - 15:00 PDT

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Prescribing beta-agonists and steroids together is the most effective way to treat asthma, according to new research to be published in the Journal of Allergy and Clinical Immunology (JACI).

In the first study of its kind to use human lung tissue, researchers at the University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine demonstrated steroids prevented the normal desensitization to beta agonists following prolonged treatment.

These findings are significant in light of the current debate surrounding potential dangers of beta agonists as treatment for asthma.

"Our data suggests that the combination of beta agonists and a steroid prevents or reverses loss of sensitivity to beta agonists," said study co-author Reynold A. Panettieri Jr., MD, FAAAAI. "Combination therapy is clearly superior to the use of either drug alone."

When asthma is treated with beta agonists alone, the airways can become desensitized to the medications, reducing the efficacy of treatment and increasing the risks of asthma exacerbations. However, when lung tissue received exposure to steroids and bet agonists, either the resistance was prevented or sensitivity was restored.

The study tested the medications' efficacy on human lung tissue from donors. When beta agonists were used alone, the tissue became desensitized. When the tissue was exposed to steroids, then to beta agonists, the desensitizing did not occur.

The JACI is the official scientific journal of the American Academy of Allergy, Asthma & Immunology (AAAAI). With an impact factor of 8.115, the JACI is the most-cited journal in the allergy subspecialty.

The AAAAI represents allergists, asthma specialists, clinical immunologists, allied health professionals and others with a special interest in the research and treatment of allergic disease. Established in 1943, the AAAAI has nearly 6,500 members in the United States, Canada and 60 other countries. The AAAAI promotes public education of allergic disease through its Web site, http://www.aaaai.org.

American Academy of Allergy, Asthma & Immunology