EASE OF HANDLING AND CLINICAL EFFICACY OF FLUTICASONE PROPIONATE ACCUHALER DISKUS(TM) INHALER COMPARED WITH THE TURBOHALER(TM) INHALER IN PEDIATRIC-PATIENTS/

A total of 323 children aged 4-11 years who were receiving, or had sym ptoms indicating a clinical requirement for, inhaled corticosteroid at a daily dose of 400 mu g budesonide (BUD) or beclomethasone dipropion ate (BDP), or 200 mu g fluticasone propionate (FP), were randomised in to this multicentre, open-label, parallel group study. Patients receiv ed either FP 100 mu g b.d. administered via the Accuhaler/Diskus inhal er (n=159) or BUD 200 mu g b.d. administered via a Turbohaler inhaler (n=164) for four weeks and recorded daily their morning and evening pe ak expiratory flow (PEF), asthma symptoms and use of relief medication . Device handling was assessed by a questionnaire, with responses reco rded on three- or five-point ordinal scales. The primary efficacy para meter was mean percent predicted morning PEF. The device handling resu lts showed the Accuhaler/Diskus inhaler was rated more favourably than the Turbohaler inhaler in terms of ease of correct inhaler use, ease of telling how many doses were left, ease of knowing whether a dose ha d been inhaled and overall liking of the device, More patients in the Accuhaler/Diskus group (85%) than in the Turbohaler group (58%) said t hey would be happy to receive the same device again, while 8% and 25% respectively said they would not be happy to be given it again, In add ition, the change from baseline to week 4 of treatment in mean percent predicted morning PEF was greater in the FP Accuhaler/Diskus group, i ndicating that FP 200 mu g daily via Accuhaler/Diskus inhaler is at le ast as clinically effective as BUD 400 mu g daily via the Turbohaler i nhaler.