Good News For Parents: Newer Asthma Medications Make The Grade

Main Category: Respiratory / Asthma
Article Date: 14 Mar 2009 - 0:00 PDT

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Children taking more recent asthma medications were found to have better asthma control compared to a cohort of severe asthmatic children studied a decade ago, according to research unveiled at the 2009 Annual Meeting of the American Academy of Allergy, Asthma & Immunology (AAAAI).

To determine if medications introduced over the past decade have positively impacted children with severe asthma, Joseph Spahn, MD, and colleagues at National Jewish Health in Denver compared a review of severe asthmatic children referred to the National Jewish Health Day Program between 2004 and 2007 with the results to a published cohort of children with severe asthma from 1993 to 1997.

Seventy-six percent of the present cohort was on leukotriene receptor antagonists (LTRA) and 66% were using combination inhaled glucocorticoids and long-acting bronchodilators (iGC/LABA), while none of the historic group received these medications.

While the present cohort was younger and had a higher proportion of males, the percentage requiring chronic oral glucocorticoid (GC) therapy, along with the average dose and duration of oral GC use were less in the present group. The current cohort also had fewer GC-induced adverse effects compared to the historic group.

Additionally, the present cohort had higher FEV1, required less albuterol and had fewer intubations in the past.

The study authors suggest these findings are likely due to the asthma medications used by the current cohort, which are more effective than older treatments.

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 more than 6,500 members in the United States, Canada and 60 other countries.

Notes

- This study was presented during the 2009 Annual Meeting of the American Academy of Allergy, Asthma & Immunology (AAAAI) on March 13-17 in Washington, DC. However, it does not necessarily reflect the policies or the opinions of the AAAAI.

- A link to all abstracts presented at the Annual Meeting is available on the AAAAI Web site http://aaaai.org/media/newsroom/am2009/

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