Researchers find association between vaping and asthma among US adolescents

A new study from the Texas A&M University School of Public Health suggests that vaping increases the risk of asthma in adolescents who have never smoked conventional tobacco products. Vaping, or the use of electronic cigarettes (e-cigarettes), among adolescents has grown dramatically over the past several years. Although e-cigarettes have fewer toxins than regular cigarettes, they still contain a mixture of harmful […]

Poor sleep may bolster genetic susceptibility to asthma, potentially doubling risk

Poor quality sleep may bolster a person’s genetic susceptibility to asthma, potentially doubling their risk of being diagnosed with the condition, suggests a large UK Biobank study, published in the open access journal BMJ Open Respiratory Research. A healthy sleep pattern seems to be linked to a lower risk of asthma, prompting the researchers to suggest that spotting and treating sleep […]

Allergic (atopic) asthma/eczema linked to heightened risk of osteoarthritis

People with atopic (allergic) diseases like asthma or eczema may be at heightened risk of the painful and often disabling joint condition, osteoarthritis, finds research published online in the Annals of the Rheumatic Diseases. Drugs used to dampen down the physiological prompts for allergic reactions in the body may help lessen this risk, suggest the researchers. Osteoarthritis is the most common […]

Frequent GP visits improve health outcomes for children with asthma but are often irregular and inconsistent

Frequent GP visits improve health outcomes for children with asthma, however they are often irregular and inconsistent leading to an increase in hospital readmissions, new research has found. Two studies, led by Murdoch Children’s Research Institute, have highlighted the gaps and opportunities across the primary care network in childhood asthma care to ensure services remain accessible in the wake of GP […]

A way to make asthma drugs last longer

For many, inhalers are a sort of miracle drug. From gasping for air one minute, to breathing normally the next, patients can experience significant relief after one or two puffs. What few people realize is that these life-saving medicines can actually stop working in the long term, especially in people who use them often and in high doses. Researchers around […]

Potential long-term treatment for asthma found

A possible way to tackle one of the underlying causes of asthma has been developed by researchers from Aston University and Imperial College London. In tests in mice, the researchers were able to virtually eliminate asthmatic symptoms within two weeks and return their airways to near normal. Just under 5.5 million people in the UK receive treatment for asthma and […]

More than a quarter of people with asthma still over-using rescue inhalers, putting them at increased risk of severe attacks

Asthma is a common lung condition that affects 5.4 million people in the UK and can lead to symptoms such as coughing, wheezing or feeling breathless. Asthma is best controlled by regular use of a corticosteroid inhaler, which prevents symptoms from occurring. People with asthma may also use rescue or ‘SABA’ (short-acting beta-agonist) inhalers to quickly relieve symptoms when needed. […]

FDA approves Dupixent as add-on treatment for moderate-to-severe asthma – Sanofi + Regeneron

The FDA has approved Dupixent (dupilumab), from Sanofi + Regeneron, as an add-on maintenance treatment of patients aged 6 to 11 years with moderate-to-severe asthma characterized by an eosinophilic phenotype or with oral corticosteroid-dependent asthma. The FDA approval is based on data from a Phase III randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled trial that evaluated the efficacy and safety of Dupixent combined with […]

Scientists identify severe asthma species, show air pollutant as likely contributor

Asthma afflicts more than 300 million people worldwide. The most severe manifestation, known as non-Th2, or non-atopic childhood asthma, represents the majority of the cases, greater than 85%, particularly in low-income countries, according to Hyunok Choi, an associate professor at the Lehigh University College of Health. Yet, whether non-Th2 is a distinct disease (or endotype) or simply a unique set […]

Triple inhaler therapy for asthma appears to improve outcomes

Article written by Bruce Sylvester. Researchers report that, when compared with dual inhaler therapy for moderate to severe asthma, triple therapy for children aged 6 to 18 years and adults is significantly associated with fewer severe exacerbations and with modest improvements in asthma control. The investigators also reported no significant differences between therapies in quality of life or mortality outcomes. […]