New Asthma Medication: Good Breathing With No Side Effects?
New Asthma Medication: Good Breathing With No Side Effects?
Oct. 23, 2000 -- People with asthma have lived with an unsatisfactory trade-off for decades. Drug-induced tremors and a rapid heart rate have been part of the package, as well as worrying about the long-term effects of inhaled corticosteroids. In the last 20 years, a chain of innovations in asthma care has slowly tipped the balance, so that each new medication holds the promise of fewer side effects.
Now, a new drug on the horizon called Xolair may do just that: help improve an asthmatic's condition with fewer problems. This substance appears to stop the series of events that cause allergy-related asthma episodes before they start. And even better, scientists say that the drug may control asthma symptomswithout the annoying, worrisome side effects typical of asthma medications.
People with allergies such as hay fever produce an excessive amount of an immune system component, immunoglobulin-E, or IgE. IgE in normal levels can help fight some types of infection, but when the body produces too much, it can cause the body to release chemicals that in turn cause itching, watery eyes, and sneezing. In the case of people with asthma, high levels of IgE also causes shortness of breath and wheezing.
Xolair (omalizumab) works by stopping the production of IgE in response to an allergic trigger -- such as cigarette smoke, cat dander, pollen or dust. Thus, it prevents asthma attacks rather than just lessening them once they have occurred, which is how inhaled bronchodilators, such as Ventolin or Proventil, work. These inhaled drugs, however, can cause tremors.
Another mainstay of asthma therapy is the group of drugs called corticosteroids, which prevent or reduce the swelling in the airways associated with asthma but can have significant side effects, such as mouth infections or weight gain, in the short term. If taken orally for long periods of time, the medications can cause high blood pressure and bone thinning. Corticosteroids are a completely different medication than the anabolic steroids that are banned in athletic events.
But now this latest study, presented Monday at a national meeting of lung specialists, shows that asthma sufferers receiving Xolair report "good" or "excellent" control of their disease with no bothersome side effects. One of the study's authors says the drug is an important breakthrough in the treatment of asthma. "In the future, an agent will be available that has the potential to block the allergic reaction before it gets started," Jeffrey P. Tillinghast, MD, tells WebMD. "In people with moderate to severe asthma, this substance can improve and increase control and allow a tapering of asthma medications, such as inhaled corticosteroids."
New Asthma Medication: Good Breathing With No Side Effects?
Oct. 23, 2000 -- People with asthma have lived with an unsatisfactory trade-off for decades. Drug-induced tremors and a rapid heart rate have been part of the package, as well as worrying about the long-term effects of inhaled corticosteroids. In the last 20 years, a chain of innovations in asthma care has slowly tipped the balance, so that each new medication holds the promise of fewer side effects.
Now, a new drug on the horizon called Xolair may do just that: help improve an asthmatic's condition with fewer problems. This substance appears to stop the series of events that cause allergy-related asthma episodes before they start. And even better, scientists say that the drug may control asthma symptomswithout the annoying, worrisome side effects typical of asthma medications.
People with allergies such as hay fever produce an excessive amount of an immune system component, immunoglobulin-E, or IgE. IgE in normal levels can help fight some types of infection, but when the body produces too much, it can cause the body to release chemicals that in turn cause itching, watery eyes, and sneezing. In the case of people with asthma, high levels of IgE also causes shortness of breath and wheezing.
Xolair (omalizumab) works by stopping the production of IgE in response to an allergic trigger -- such as cigarette smoke, cat dander, pollen or dust. Thus, it prevents asthma attacks rather than just lessening them once they have occurred, which is how inhaled bronchodilators, such as Ventolin or Proventil, work. These inhaled drugs, however, can cause tremors.
Another mainstay of asthma therapy is the group of drugs called corticosteroids, which prevent or reduce the swelling in the airways associated with asthma but can have significant side effects, such as mouth infections or weight gain, in the short term. If taken orally for long periods of time, the medications can cause high blood pressure and bone thinning. Corticosteroids are a completely different medication than the anabolic steroids that are banned in athletic events.
But now this latest study, presented Monday at a national meeting of lung specialists, shows that asthma sufferers receiving Xolair report "good" or "excellent" control of their disease with no bothersome side effects. One of the study's authors says the drug is an important breakthrough in the treatment of asthma. "In the future, an agent will be available that has the potential to block the allergic reaction before it gets started," Jeffrey P. Tillinghast, MD, tells WebMD. "In people with moderate to severe asthma, this substance can improve and increase control and allow a tapering of asthma medications, such as inhaled corticosteroids."
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