Am. J. Respir. Crit. Care Med., Vol 149, No. 1, Jan 1994, 91-97.
Nedocromil sodium versus albuterol in the management of allergic asthma
JW de Jong, JP Teengs, DS Postma, TW van der Mark, GH Koeter and JG de Monchy
Department of Allergology, University Hospital, Groningen, The Netherlands.
In a double-blind, double-placebo, randomized crossover study, we compared
the effects of 6 wk of treatment with the anti-inflammatory drug nedocromil
sodium (16 mg/day) with 6 wk of treatment with the bronchodilator drug
albuterol (800 micrograms/day) in 29 adults with allergic asthma. After 3
and 6 wk of treatment with nedocromil sodium, patients were significantly
less hyperresponsive to propranolol (p = 0.002 and p = 0.02) and almost
significantly less hyperresponsive to histamine (p = 0.071 and p = 0.065).
FEV1 and FVC percent predicted tended to be higher, morning PEF values
increased significantly (p = 0.038 and p = 0.03), and diurnal and
day-to-day PEF variation decreased (p = 0.03 and p = 0.093, p = 0.005 and p
= 0.096, respectively) with nedocromil sodium treatment compared with
albuterol treatment. Almost all symptoms (daytime and nighttime asthma,
wheezing, shortness of breath) and the additional bronchodilator use were
significantly reduced with nedocromil sodium treatment compared with
albuterol treatment. Treatment with the anti-inflammatory drug nedocromil
sodium was shown to be superior to treatment with the bronchodilator drug
albuterol. The patient's clinical situation may deteriorate when beta 2-
agonists are used continuously. Nedocromil sodium has good clinical effect,
and it may serve as a first-line choice for antiinflammatory therapy in
asthma.
