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| |  Statins Show Promise as Possible Asthma Treatment: Presented at AAAAI By Carole VanSickle Ellis NEW ORLEANS -- February 28, 2010 -- A treatment that has been used for years in primary and secondary prevention of cardiovascular disease may hold promise for immunomodulation in asthma therapy as well, researchers said here on February 27 at the 2010 American Academy of Allergy, Asthma & Immunology (AAAAI) Annual Meeting. In recent years, exploratory research has been conducted around the concept of using statins to help treat lung disease. The properties of statins that make them potentially beneficial in those instances may also improve asthma conditions as well. Odelya E. Pagovich, MD, Beth Israel Medical Center, New York, New York, and colleagues performed a retrospective chart review of patients with asthma. No changes in medications or dosages (other than the addition of statins) were permitted during the trial period. Asthma severity, albuterol use, and peak flows (PF) were tracked and recorded both prior to and after the initiation of the statin therapy for 1 and 2 months. The final study group was comprised of 70 patients of which 54% were prescribed atorvastatin and 41% were prescribed simvastatin. There were no significant changes in albuterol or PF measurements (P = .52 and P = .63, respectively) during the pre-statin therapy months. However, PF increased and albuterol use decreased 1 month following the therapy. The mean difference in PF between pre- and post-therapy was 22.4, while the mean difference in albuterol use per week was -3.3. Asthma classifications changed for the better following the study for many of the patients, with the group classified as “mild intermittent” climbing from 7% to 13%, and the group classified as “mild persistent” climbing from 21% to 29%. The data suggest that components of the asthmatic inflammatory cascade could be improved with statin treatment. However, Dr. Pagovich cautioned that statin treatment is not a primary prevention treatment. “It has a potential role in asthma therapy,” she said, “and is very promising to look at.” The study may have been limited by the small sample size, lack of a control group, and the female predominant population. In addition, seasonality, exposures, and other cofounders may have been at issue. Funding for this study was provided by the National Institutes of Health. [Presentation title: Statins May Improve Asthma. Abstract 178]
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