Treatment Of Children’s Asthma With A Lipid Extract Of The New Zealand Green Lipped Mussel (Perna Canaliculus) (Lyprinol®) - A Double Blind, Randomised Controlled Trial In Children With Moderate To Severe Chronic Obstructive Asthma.

Abstract

The efficacy and safety of an oral standardised lipid extract of New Zealand green lipped mussel (Perna canaliculus) marketed as Lyprinol ® was assessed as maintenance therapy for children with moderate asthma. A total of 71 children aged 6 to 13 years were enrolled in a 16-week, single centre, double-masked, placebo-controlled, parallel-group trial and randomly assigned to receive either Lyprinol or placebo (2 capsules twice daily). Patients were maintained on as-needed beta-agonist therapy and inhaled corticosteroid (ICS) throughout the study. Results. Lyprinol improved the percentage of children reporting little or no trouble with their asthma at three months of treatment (97% vs. 76% p=0.057). Both groups were able to tolerate a dose reduction of ICS. There were fewer mild and moderate asthma exacerbations overall in the Lyprinol group. Lyprinol was well tolerated. It appears from this study that Lyprinol is a safe nutritional supplement for children with moderate asthma and that larger prospective controlled studies should explore its potential use as a nutraceutical in asthma as an addition to conventional treatment.