Teva's QVAR effective in "real life" study

Israeli generics giant Teva Pharmaceutical Industries presented results from a study demonstrating that inhaled corticosteroid therapy with QVAR  (beclomethasone) was effective compared to other asthma treatments, at  the American Academy of Allergy Asthma & Immunology annual meeting in  Washington DC.

The one-year study was designed to assess the effectiveness of QVAR and  other ICS therapies on a "real life" basis. Asthma patients, aged five  to 60, without other chronic respiratory diseases, receiving QVAR,  beclomethasone or fluticasone propionate metered dose inhalers who  subsequently had ICS increase between January 1997 and June 2006 were  identified from the UK General Practice Research Database. Data were  available for 4,133 patients (8% QVAR, 15% FP, 77% BDP-CFC).

The odds ratio for successful asthma control was significantly lower  with beclomethasone, 0.65 (0.47-0.90), than QVAR, and asthma  exacerbation rates were significantly higher with fluticasone, 1.61  (1.02-2.55), than QVAR.