Department of Health and Human Services - www.hhs.gov
Department of Health and Human Services - www.hhs.gov
healthfinder.gov - A Service of the National Health Information Center, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services

 

healthfinder.gov Home   |   About Us   |   News   |   Health Library   |   Consumer Guides   |   Organizations   |   En Español   |   Kids   |   Contact Us

Home > News

Drug Combo Cuts COPD Lung Function Loss

Trial called first to prove effective therapy across sex, age, ethnicity, body mass

  • E-mail this article
  • Subscribe to news
  • Printer friendly version
  • (SOURCE: American Thoracic Society, news release, Aug. 15, 2008)

    FRIDAY, Aug. 15 (HealthDay News) -- A new drug therapy may help cut down on the lung function loss experienced by patients with moderate to severe chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), a new study says.

    According to the second August issue of American Journal of Respiratory and Critical Care Medicine, a combination of salmeterol, a β-agonist, and fluticasone propiniate, an inhaled cortical steroid, proved a successful therapy in a randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled trial conducted in 42 countries.

    "Pharmacotherapy with salmeterol plus fluticasone propionate, or the components, reduces the rate of decline on [lung function] in patients with moderate to severe COPD, thus slowing disease progression," study author Dr. Bartolome R. Celli, a professor at Tufts University School of Medicine, said in a news release issued by the journal's publisher. "To date, smoking cessation is the only intervention that has conclusively been shown to alter the rate of decline in [lung function]."

    Celli said this is the first demonstration of an effective drug therapy in COPD.

    The rate of lung function decline was similar despite variables such as sex, age, ethnicity and body-mass index.

    "Although treatment did not abolish the accelerated decline in lung function [that occurs with COPD], it did ameliorate it substantially," Celli wrote.

    More information

    The American Academy of Family Physicians has more about COPD.  External Links Disclaimer Logo

    Copyright © 2008 ScoutNews, LLC. All rights reserved.  External Links Disclaimer Logo

    HealthDayNews articles are derived from various sources and do not reflect federal policy. healthfinder.gov does not endorse opinions, products, or services that may appear in news stories. For more information on health topics in the news, visit the healthfinder.gov health library.

    healthfinder.gov logo USA dot Gov: The U.S. Government’s Official Web Portal
    footer shadow