SAN DIEGO (November 6, 2002) -- An asthma treatment that contains both an inhaled long-acting bronchodilator and an inhaled corticosteroid was as effective at providing overall asthma control as more than double the dose of the inhaled corticosteroid alone, according to a study presented today at CHEST 2002, the annual scientific meeting of the American College of Chest Physicians.

This "inhaled corticosteroid-sparing" effect is an important consideration in asthma therapy. According to asthma treatment guidelines issued by the National Institutes of Health, inhaled corticosteroids are the most effective long-term-control medications available for the treatment of asthma.1 Though inhaled corticosteroids are generally well-tolerated at recommended doses, asthma treatment guidelines recommend that patients should use the lowest dose necessary for asthma control to help optimize the risk/benefit ratio for individual patients.1

The study compared Advair Diskus 100/50 -- which contains 100 mcg of fluticasone propionate (an inhaled corticosteroid) and 50 mcg of salmeterol (an inhaled long-acting bronchodilator) -- twice daily with fluticasone propionate 250 mcg twice daily. The study involved 558 patients 12 years of age and older who required fluticasone propionate 250 mcg twice daily for asthma control.

Advair Diskus is the first and only product to effectively treat the two main causes of asthma symptoms -- inflammation and bronchoconstriction -- in one easy-to-use2 device. Advair Diskus does not replace fast-acting inhalers to treat sudden symptoms.

In this study, Advair Diskus 100/50 twice daily was used to reduce the dose of inhaled corticosteroids by 60 p
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6-Nov-2002