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SELECTED ARTICLES FROM THE RECENT LITERATURE 2007
September 20, 2007
Effects of omalizumab therapy in severe asthma
Summary
Background - A minority of asthmatics cannot be controlled on high doses of inhaled corticosteroids (ICS) and inhaled long acting beta agonists (LABA). Such individuals are at increased risk for severe asthma related morbidity and mortality.
Findings - Stheoger et al of the Kaplan Medical Center in Rehovoth, Israel compared treatment with omalizumab (Omal), a monoclonal anti-IgE antibody, vs placebo for 24 weeks in 33 adults with severe persistent asthma (PA) despite previous treatment with high dosage ICS plus LABA. They found that the frequency of acute asthma exacerbations and all asthma related emergency visits were both reduced by about 55% in the Omal- added treated patients compared to the placebo- added treatment. There were no major adverse reactions to Omal therapy.
Reference
Isr Med Assn J 2007;9:472-75
Editor's Comments
Findings such as this are the basis for the impression that the major role of Omal therapy in asthma is the add-on treatment of severe PA. Although no adverse reactions to Omal therapy were reported in this study, there have been scattered case reports of anaphylaxis-like reactions following Omal administration. The FDA has man dated a warning about this potentially serious complication of Omal therapy.
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