Title:Inhaled Therapies for Asthma and Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease
Volume: 27
Issue: 12
Author(s): Yingmin Liang and Judith C.W. Mak*
Affiliation:
- Department of Medicine, LKS Faculty of Medicine, The University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong SAR,China
Keywords:
Asthma, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, glucocorticoid, inflammation, inhalation, bronchodilator.
Abstract: Asthma and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) are obstructive lung diseases which are
characterized by chronic inflammation and an increase in mucus production, and are highly prevalent conditions.
Despite recent advances and multiple available therapies, there remains a significant unmet medical need.
Over the past 40 years, the introduction of new classes of safe and effective therapy is insufficient. In spite of
the high burden of asthma and COPD among patients, there are fewer new approved therapies in comparison to
cardiovascular, metabolic and neurological diseases due to few drug candidates and a higher failure rate in the
development of respiratory medicine. Lung diseases are amongst the leading causes of death globally with
asthma being one of the most prevalent respiratory diseases, which affects people of all ages but, despite effective
therapies available, many patients are poorly controlled and have a low quality of life. COPD is currently
ranked as the fourth cause of death worldwide and predicted to become the third leading cause of death in 2030.
The development of more effective treatments is urgently needed in order to reduce the high mortality rate and
the enormous suffering from asthma and COPD. Various inhalation devices with different classes of medications
are the foundation as therapies in both asthma and COPD. This article gives a comprehensive review of
the promising inhaled therapies in the treatment of asthma and COPD. However, the lack of disease control in
asthma and COPD patients may be due to numerous reasons. The association between non-adherence to guidelines
on the part of the health care provider and poor inhalation technique and/or non-adherence to the prescribed
treatment plan by the patients is common. It is therefore essential to discuss the different delivery systems
and the methods used in asthma and COPD patients.
