Asthma News and Research

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Asthma is a common inflammatory disease affecting the airways that leads to shortness of breath, coughing and wheezing. Symptoms range from mild to severe but are generally manageable with appropriate treatment.

Inhaled corticosteroids most effective for persistent asthma in children

While both inhaled corticosteroids (ICS) and leukotriene receptor antagonists (LTRA) have been proven to help control mild-to-moderate persistent asthma in school-age children, a new study shows ICS may be the more effective treatment.

11 Jan 2006

Anthroposophic lifestyle reduces the risk of allergic disease in children

Certain features of the anthroposophic lifestyle, such as restrictive use of antibiotics and fever antipyretics, reduce the risk of allergic disease in children, according to a new study.

10 Jan 2006

Fish oil shown to reduce airway inflammation caused by exercise-induced asthma

People suffering from exercise-induced asthma were able to reduce their symptoms below the threshold used to diagnose the disease by eating a diet supplemented with fish oil, according to new research findings from Indiana University reported in the January issue of the journal Chest.

10 Jan 2006

Flu kills more U.S. children than chicken pox, whooping cough, and measles combined

A new study has shown that flu killed more U.S. children than chicken pox, whooping cough, and measles combined in the 2003-2004 flu season.

19 Dec 2005

Kids with specific gene variant more at risk from passive smoking

When U.S. children who possess a variant gene are exposed to second-hand smoke in their homes, they are at a substantially greater risk for developing respiratory illnesses that lead to school absences.

15 Dec 2005

Streptococcus mutans copes without pathway

Leave it to the bacteria that cause tooth decay to be able to live without something all cells were thought to require.

13 Dec 2005

Common garden plant may hold cure for leukemia

Scientists in the U.S. believe they have identified a new pathway in the progression of chronic myelogenous leukemia (CML).

12 Dec 2005

Nasal flu vaccine just as safe as a jab

According to U.S. government researchers, a new nasal vaccine against influenza, which helps patients avoid the needle, has caused no unexpected side-effects.

7 Dec 2005

Findings may help in development of new anti-inflammatory compounds

Virginia Commonwealth University researchers studying the enzyme that triggers inflammation have found that it may be a target for a new class of anti-inflammatory drugs to treat arthritis, asthma, multiple sclerosis, lung and colon cancers and Alzheimer's disease.

2 Dec 2005

Significant relationships between household endotoxin and diagnosed asthma

Exposure to household endotoxin levels poses a significant risk for asthma, according to the first nationwide sampling of house dust.

2 Dec 2005

Risk of severe asthma episodes predicted from fluctuation analysis of airway function

A startling new study published in the science journal Nature this week (Nature Vol 438, issue 7068, pp 667-670) reveals that inhalers used by asthmatics for symptomatic relief of their condition might actually increase the likelihood of an acute attack.

30 Nov 2005

University of Nottingham academic awarded prestigious professorship for research into lung disease

An academic at The University of Nottingham has been awarded a unique professorship by a leading national charity in recognition of his research, which aims to improve the medical care of patients with lung disease and respiratory infections.

30 Nov 2005

Mother of all rows over flu jabs

British Health Secretary Patricia Hewitt when she blamed doctors for a shortage of the flu vaccine has triggered the mother of all rows with the British medical fraternity.

24 Nov 2005

Health experts in the UK warn flu vaccine will run out

Fear of a flu pandemic has triggered an unprecedented demand for winter flu vaccines and health officials in the UK are warning that the NHS could run out of supplies.

22 Nov 2005

Early wheezers continue to have poorer lung function as they age

Among children who exhibit asthma-like symptoms during preschool years, researchers have found that patterns of wheezing prevalence and levels of lung function are established by age 6 and do not significantly change for at least 10 years.

21 Nov 2005

Warnings on popular asthma drug could damage drug giant

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) is recommending new restrictions on the asthma drug Advair.

21 Nov 2005

Allergists help manage asthma better

Compared to patients receiving care from primary care physicians, asthma patients who are under the care of an allergist report fewer asthma control problems and less sever asthma symptoms, according to new research in the December 2005 Journal of Allergy & Clinical Immunology (JACI).

20 Nov 2005