Boehringer Ingelheim launches Spiriva Respimat in US market for maintenance treatment of asthma in adults & adolescents
Boehringer Ingelheim, one of the world’s 20 leading pharmaceutical companies, announced that Spiriva Respimat is now available for the treatment of asthma by prescription in US pharmacies. The US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approved a once-daily dose of 2.5 µg for the long-term maintenance treatment of asthma in people ages 12 and older.“Despite taking other daily maintenance treatments, many people with asthma continue to experience symptoms, including coughing, wheezing, shortness of breath,” said Michael B. Foggs, MD, Chief of Allergy & Immunology, Advocate Medical Group, Advocate Health Care Chicago, IL. “For these patients, adding Spiriva Respimat to maintenance controller therapy may help open airways to improve breathing and reduce the likelihood of asthma flare-ups or exacerbations.”People with asthma who continue to experience symptoms during the course of a week have a six times greater chance of having an asthma flare-up in the following few weeks than those with minimal to no daytime symptoms. These persistent symptoms can have a negative impact on the ability to perform daily activities for people living with asthma.Unlike other asthma daily maintenance treatments, Spiriva Respimat is from a new class of medications in asthma known as long-acting anticholinergics, the first new class of inhaled medicine approved in over 10 years for asthma.Spiriva Respimat in asthma is delivered by Respimat, the inhaler which actively‡ delivers a unique mist, meaning the patient just needs to breathe in naturally for the medication to go deep into the lungs.“Spiriva Respimat is a new treatment option for asthma patients who remain symptomatic despite their maintenance treatment,” said Dr. William Mezzanotte, Head of Respiratory Medicine, Boehringer Ingelheim. “Spiriva Respimat significantly improves lung function and reduces the risk of exacerbations in patients who remain symptomatic despite their maintenance treatment and is included in the 2015 GINA Global Strategy for Asthma Management and Prevention.”The FDA approved Spiriva Respimat for the treatment of asthma based on efficacy and safety data from a comprehensive clinical trial program, including 12 trials of approximately 5,000 adults and adolescents with mild, moderate and severe symptomatic asthma on at least an inhaled corticosteroid (ICS).Ingelheim, GermanyFriday, February 05, 2016http://www.pharmabiz.com/
