Beclason ECO Easy Breathe: new possibilities of known drug in treatment of asthma

Abstract

An open comparative trial was designed to compare clinical efficacy of beclomethasone dipropionate (BDP) via non-freon metered dose inhaler (MDI) Easy Breathe or freon-containing MDI. The trial involved 30 patients not younger than 18 yrs with stable moderate to severe bronchial asthma (BA). The length of the disease exceeded 12 months and duration of previous therapy with inhaled steroids (freon-containing BDP) 1 000 to 1 500 mcg daily was at least 4 months. The trial duration was 6 months. The patients were randomised into 2 groups, 15 patients in each. Clinical signs, peak expiratory flow rate, need in short-acting β2-agonists were monitored. The study group patients were given non-freon BDP (Easy Breathe) instead of freon-containing BDP in the ratio 1 : 1. The control group patients continued treatment with freon-containing BDP. Then BDP daily doses were gradually reduced in both the groups while BA was controlled adequately. The daily dose was reduced by 500 mcg in average in 11 of 15 (73.3 %) non-freon BDP patients and in 6 (40 %) freon-containing BPD patients. So, BDP via MDI ECO Easy Breathe allows moderate to severe BA to be controlled with lower doses of the drug. This reduces a cost of the therapy, rate of potential adverse effects and results in improvement of quality of life of the patients.