Respiratory system agents

Simple saline spray is as effective as drug therapy for treating chronic nosebleeds

Squirting a simple saline solution into the nostrils twice a day could alleviate chronic nosebleeds just as effectively as administering any one of three different medication sprays, a study shows.  A total of 121 people were randomly assigned to receive bevacizumab, estriol, tranexamic a…

Vitamin D reduces the rate of severe asthma attacks

Vitamin D supplementation can reduce the risk of severe asthma attacks by over a third, a systematic review has found. …

Intranasal steroids underused in chronic sinusitis

Topical intranasal steroids are underused among patients with chronic rhinosinusitis, a Canadian study has revealed. …

Why we need write access to patient summary care records

A patient came into our pharmacy requesting an emergency supply of a salbutamol inhaler recently. He lives elsewhere but was working locally. We accessed his summary care record (SCR) and, to our surprise, discovered that he had not been prescribed anything since 2015. Before then, he was regularly …

Injectable asthma drug reslizumab approved by European Commission

The European Commission has approved a marketing authorisation for reslizumab (Teva Pharmaceutical Industries’ Cinqaero), an injectable treatment for use in severe asthma.  The decision follows a recommendation in June 2016 by the European Medicines Agency’s Committee for Medi…

Lung disease patients still don’t use inhalers properly

Data spanning 40 years show only 31% of patients with asthma or COPD use inhalers correctly, prompting calls for new approaches to education and drug delivery.…

Oral treatment shows promise for persistent eosinophilic asthma

An early trial of the experimental oral asthma therapy fevipiprant has shown it is effective in reducing airway inflammation among patients with persistent eosinophilic asthma.…

How to help patients optimise their inhaler technique

Examining the impact of sub-optimal inhaler technique and how healthcare professionals can support patients in optimising their technique.…

Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease: clinical phenotypes and implications for management

Phenotyping patients with chronic obsructive pulmonary disease allows their separation into distinct categories that differentiate their prognosis and response to treatment, producing clinically meaningful outcomes.…

Impact of a pharmacist-led asthma and COPD respiratory clinic in general practice

Asthma and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) continue to account for a large burden of disease in the UK. Despite comprehensive guidelines, more than 1,000 people die from asthma each year and COPD accounts for a leading cause of emergency admissions in the UK. In a joint initiative betwe…