An experimental asthma drug called Fevipiprant is showing potential to ease symptoms in people who have a severe form of the condition. The study on the new drug's effects on asthma patients compared to placebo was published in The Lancet Respiratory Medicine journal.
EurekAlert reported that the Fevipiprant trial involved 61 people who had asthma that were divided into two groups. The first group took a dose of 225 mg of Fevipiprant twice a day for 12 weeks while the remaining asthma sufferers took placebo. The patients were still taking their regular asthma medication during the course of the drug trial.
Asthma pill 'promising' for people with severe symptoms https://t.co/u7AN8qKhzr
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Asthma patients who took Fevipiprant during the trial were found to have had a significant decrease in asthma symptoms and showed improved lung function, according to a report in The Guardian. Additionally, the asthma sufferers also showed decreased lung inflammation and improvement in the lining of their lungs.
"This new drug could be a gamechanger for future treatment of asthma", said research leader Chris Brightling, as per the report. Brightling is a senior research fellow and clinical professor in respiratory medicine at Leicester University. Brightling added that Fevipiprant could possibly decrease the need of asthma patients to take oral steroids.
A patient involved in the study was happy about the results of taking Fevipiprant. "I felt like a completely different person. I had more get up and go, I was less wheezy and for the first time in years, I felt really, really well," said 16-year severe asthma sufferer Gaye Stokes, as per a report in BBC.
Dr. Samantha Walker from Asthma UK said that the study is "an exciting development" even though more research is needed regarding the experimental asthma drug. Walker said that having a pill to deal with asthma instead of using inhalers is a good possibility as older asthma sufferers may have difficulty in using inhalers.
