Common Asthma Drug Reduces COVID-19 Hospitalization Risk and Recovery Time – Oxford Study

(Reuters) – A commonly used asthma treatment appears to reduce the need for hospitalizations as well as recovery time for patients with COVID-19 if given within seven days of symptom onset, said Tuesday researchers at the University of Oxford.

The results were obtained from a mid-term study of the steroid budesonide, sold as Pulmicort by AstraZeneca Plc and also used to treat smoker’s lung.

The 28-day study of 146 patients suggested that inhaled budesonide reduced the risk of urgent care or hospitalization by 90% compared to usual care, the University of Oxford said.

The researchers said the trial was inspired by the fact that patients with chronic respiratory diseases, who are often prescribed inhaled steroids, were significantly under-represented among patients hospitalized with COVID-19 during the first days of the disease. pandemic. (bit.ly/3q40g1W)

Initial study data also revealed that volunteers treated with budesonide had a faster resolution of fever and fewer persistent symptoms.

“I am encouraged that a relatively safe, widely available, and well-researched drug … could impact the pressures we face during the pandemic,” said Mona Bafadhel, lead investigator for the trial.

Pulmicort was once a blockbuster drug for coronavirus vaccine maker AstraZeneca, which now offers a new drug, Symbicort, as an alternative treatment for asthma.

The results of the Oxford University study have not yet been published in a peer-reviewed journal.