Study: Inhaled Corticosteroids Benefit COPD
The following was originally published at healthcentral.com/copd on June 15, 2015 Study Confirms Benefit of Inhaled Corticosteroids For COPD While recent studies have shed some doubt about the benefits of using inhaled corticosteroids as a top-line treatment for COPD, a recent review of studies confirms they do, indeed, benefit COPD patients. Inhaled corticosteroids (ICS) are medicines that work to reduce inflammation in COPD lungs; thus, making airways less sensitive to COPD triggers. Common inhalers that deliver inhaled steroids to COPD lungs include Qvar, Advair, Symbicort, and Breo. Pulmicort may be delivered using a nebulizer. While typically considered top-line COPD medicines, various studies have linked inhaled corticosteroids with pneumonia . Other studies show they don’t even reduce COPD flare-ups . So this left many physicians wondering if the benefits were worth the risks. A new study, however, reported at the 2015 American Thoracic Society Conference in Denver, shines...