Statins may keep asthma patients out of ER

March 17, 2009

_Statins may keep asthma patients out of ER - FiercePharma_

-03-16)

This is what Dr. Marinkovich used to use. Nystatin. I have his recipe for

the inhaler. Good stuff!

/statins-may-keep-asthma-patients-out-e-r/2009-03-16)

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Statins may keep asthma patients out of ER

March 16, 2009 â€” 12:06pm ET | By _ Staton_

Statins may have yet another target: Asthma. A new study by Medco Health

Solutions and Brigham and Women's Hospital found that asthma patients who add

statins to their asthma-drug therapy have to visit the ER less often. And

they're hospitalized less often, too.

Adults who used inhaled corticosteroids and also took statins--such as

Pfizer's Lipitor and AstraZeneca's Crestor--cut their risk of hospitalization or

an ER visit by one-third, Medco said. The pharmacy benefits manager based its

research on a retrospective review of members' records. All statins were

treated equally; in other words, results weren't broken out by which type of

statin patients used.

In addition to lowering cholesterol, statins have anti-inflammatory

properties. These might play a role in helping lower the incidence of asthma

attacks,

Dow reports. That's because asthma involves swelling of the airways,

as well as constriction of muscles in the bronchial passages. Medco plans to

present the study at the American Academy of Allergy Asthma and Immunology

meeting.

Statins aren't FDA-approved for asthma treatment, and this wasn't a rigorous

trial. " Don't rush out and buy yourself a statin for your asthma today, " Dr.

Epstein, Medco's chief medical officer, told Dow .

-

Sharon

**************Feeling the pinch at the grocery store? Make meals for Under

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