-agonists are bronchodilators, drugs that open up the air passages. They relax the smooth muscles that line the walls of the breathing tubes and make the airway wider and easier for air to move through. Beta-agonists have many potential side effects on the heart including irregular heart beats. The beta-agonists included in the study were short-acting.

Dr. Au says that these drugs are very safe and remain the first line therapy for asthma and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, but that the study suggests that doctors should exercise caution when giving a patient with heart disease their first beta-agonist prescription.

A study published in 1994 that examined a possible link between beta-agonists and increased risk of death from asthma concluded that the medication itself was not responsible for asthma deaths, but rather the greater use of beta-agonists was principally a marker for more severe asthma, which itself was associated with an increased risk of fatal or near fatal asthma.

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Contact: Bill Glitz
wglitz@aol.com
619-525-6410
American Lung Association
27-Apr-1999

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