Azathioprine for chronic asthma

There is no evidence to support the use of azathioprine in the treatment of chronic asthma as a steroid sparing-agent.

A Cochrane review included two small studies with a total of 23 subjects. No significant differences were observed in the studies for FEV₁, FVC, PaO₂ and symptoms. One study reported a statistically significant difference in Sgaw (specific airway conductance), but the clinical importance of this is uncertain. Participants may have been suffering from comorbid lung disease. No data on oral steroid consumption were reported. The findings of the studies are not generalisable, and currently there is a clear lack of evidence to support the use of azathioprine in the treatment of chronic asthma as a steroid sparing-agent.

Comment: The quality of evidence is downgraded by limitations in study quality, by indirectness (differences in studied patients) and by imprecise results (few patients).

Ədəbiyyat

1. Dean T, Dewey A, Bara A, Lasserson TJ, Walters EH. Azathioprine as an oral corticosteroid sparing agent for asthma. Cochrane Database Syst Rev 2003;(4):CD003270. [Review content assessed as up-to-date: 5 August 2010]