چکیده (انگلیسی):

Background: The clinical usefulness of fixed-dose maintenance therapy with salmeterolfluticasone (SFC)
and budesonideformoterol combination inhaler (BUDFM) has been established, though evidence of the longterm
anti-inflammatory effects of these 2 inhalers are limited.
Methods: Patients with moderate persistent adult asthma who had received SFC 50250 μg bid with wellcontrol
status were recruited. After switching to 8-week therapy with fixed-dose BUDFM 4 puffs (64018 μg)
(phase-1), patients chose either SFC or BUDFM. FeNO and ACT score were evaluated every 8 weeks until
the end of the 52-week treatment period for both treatment groups (phase-2).
Results: In total, 103 patients were examined: BUDFM was chosen by 34 patients (BUDFM group), while
SFC was chosen by 23 (SFC group). Thirty-six received SFC consistently from the beginning of the study (control).
Patients in the BUDFM and SFC groups showed significant improvements in ACT scores and FeNO levels
in phase-1; these beneficial effects persisted for 52 weeks in the BUDFM group. On the other hand, in the
SFC group, although the FeNO level decreased from 54.3 ± 26.4 ppb to 41.9 ± 18.3 ppb in phase-1, it increased
to 54.5 ± 26.2 ppb, a level similar to the baseline prior to the beginning of BUDFM therapy, at 8 weeks
in phase-2, and remained at 50-odd ppb thereafter.
Conclusions: These results suggest that maintenance therapy with fixed-dose BUDFM is a useful treatment
option exerting an airway anti-inflammatory effect for a period as long as 1 year, even for asthmatics who could
not accomplish total control with SFC.