Introduction: Progressing deterioration of the lung function, dyspnoea, cough, wheezing and chest tightness are the main features of asthma exacerbations. The first step in the prevention of severe asthma exacerbations is to intensify the anti-inflammatory treatment with high doses of inhaled corticosteroids (ICS).
Aim: To assess the efficacy of ciclesonide in patients who have been losing control of asthma despite being treated with medium doses of inhaled corticosteroids and long-acting β2-agonists (LABA) as the second controller.
Material and methods: The study was conducted in a group of 74 asthmatic patients who have been losing control of their asthma. Subjects entering the study received the following anti-inflammatory interventions: high doses of ciclesonide (1280 μg) or 640 μg of ciclesonide added to a current dose of ICS or a doubled dose of current ICS.
Results: Treatment options containing ciclesonide have shown statistically and clinically important advantages (improvement of Asthma Control Test score, reduction in rescue medication consumption, reduction in day and night symptoms score, improvement in spirometry parameters, decrease in exhaled nitric oxide, and no necessity of oral corticosteroids treatment) in comparison to patients for whom medium doses of the previously used inhaled corticosteroid were doubled.
Conclusions: Treating with high doses of ciclesonide is characterised by a quick and potent anti-inflammatory effect as well as prompt clinical improvement along with the proper safety profile in patients experiencing asthma exacerbations.
Keywords: airway inflammation; asthma exacerbations; ciclesonide.