Addition of Theophylline or Increasing the Dose of Inhaled Corticosteroid in Symptomatic Asthma: A Meta-Analysis of Randomized Controlled Trials.
10.3349/ymj.2011.52.2.268
- Author:
Yan WANG
1
;
Kexiong LIN
;
Changzheng WANG
;
Xiuqing LIAO
Author Information
1. Institute of Respiratory Diseases, Xinqiao Hospital, Third Military Medical University, Chongqing, China. wangyanflower@163.com
- Publication Type:Original Article ; Meta-Analysis
- Keywords:
Asthma;
theophylline;
inhaled corticosteroid;
meta-analysis
- MeSH:
Adrenal Cortex Hormones/administration & dosage/*therapeutic use;
Anti-Asthmatic Agents/administration & dosage/*therapeutic use;
Asthma/*drug therapy;
Forced Expiratory Volume/drug effects;
Humans;
Randomized Controlled Trials as Topic;
Theophylline/*therapeutic use;
Treatment Outcome
- From:Yonsei Medical Journal
2011;52(2):268-275
- CountryRepublic of Korea
- Language:English
-
Abstract:
PURPOSE: Low-dose theophylline has anti-inflammatory effects. The aim of this study was to evaluate the effects of adding theophylline compared with increasing the dose of inhaled corticosteroid (ICS) on symptomatic asthma. MATERIALS AND METHODS: The associated literature was acquired through deliberate searching and selected based on the established inclusion criteria for publications. The extracted data were further analyzed by a meta-analysis RESULTS: Four randomized, controlled, parallel studies were selected. Addition of theophylline produced a greater increase of forced expiratory volume in one second as %predicted (FEV1pred) by 2.49% [95% confidence interval (CI) 1.99-3.00; z = 9.70; p < 0.001], compared with increasing the dose of ICS. There was no difference between the two treatments in terms of peak expiratory flow (PEF). CONCLUSION: Addition of theophylline to ICS has similar therapeutic effects on improving lung function as increasing the dose of ICS in the treatment of symptomatic asthma.
