Another Look at As-Needed Inhaled Steroids for Asthma

Daily inhaled steroids might not be needed for all patients with mild-to-moderate asthma, but we shouldn't abandon current guidelines yet.

Because airway inflammation and hyperresponsiveness persist even when patients with asthma are asymptomatic, current National Asthma Education and Prevention Program (NAEPP) guidelines recommend daily inhaled corticosteroids (ICS) for all patients with persistent asthma. In a 9-month, placebo-controlled, multicenter trial, 342 adults with mild-to-moderate asthma that was controlled with low-dose ICS (80 µg beclomethasone twice daily) were randomized to ICS dosing based on one of three approaches:

Physician assessment every 6 weeks, using symptom scores and forced expiratory volume in 1 second (FEV₁) according to NAEPP guidelines
Measurement of exhaled nitric oxide levels every 6 weeks
Symptom-based assessment, with ICS taken only when patients…

Reviewing Author

David J. Amrol, MD

Disclosures

Speaker’s BureauAstraZeneca; Incyte

David J. Amrol, MD

Disclosures

Speaker’s BureauAstraZeneca; Incyte

Another Look at As-Needed Inhaled Steroids for Asthma

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Reviewing Author