Research analysis has shown that use of SYMBICORT® Inhalation Aerosol 160/4.5mcg in patients with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) demonstrated reversibility of airflow obstruction in 52% of patients across multiple levels of COPD severity, as measured according to guidelines from the American Thoracic Society (ATC). The additional post-hoc analysis of data from the serial spirometry subset in the SHINE and SUN trials also showed that SYMBICORT demonstrated reversibility of airflow obstruction in 36% of patients with very severe COPD.

The analysis is the first to examine the reversibility of airflow obstruction in response to an inhaled corticosteroid and long-acting ß2-agonist (ICS/LABA) combination treatment across different COPD severities. It adds to previous findings that have shown the overall efficacy of SYMBICORT in improving airflow obstruction in patients with moderate to very severe COPD, which has been traditionally considered irreversible in terms of airflow obstruction.

“Airflow obstruction is a central element of COPD and gets worse over time, making it increasingly difficult for patients to breathe,” said lead investigator Donald Tashkin, MD, of the David Geffen School of Medicine at the University of California, Los Angeles. “These data showed that SYMBICORT helped patients with even the most severe COPD breathe better by significantly demonstrating reversibility of airflow obstruction as defined by ATS standards.”

While these preliminary data demonstrated that SYMBICORT reversed airflow obstruction in some patients with COPD, they do not suggest that it slowed the progression of the disease.

The results were presented at the American Academy of Allergy, Asthma and Immunology Annual Meeting in New Orleans.