Hong Kong Respiratory Medicine

Badrul A. Chowdhury, Sally M. Seymour, and Mark S. Levenson. N Engl J Med 2011; 364:2473-2475
Long-acting beta-agonists (LABAs) — drugs that provide bronchodilation for 12 hours or longer by stimulating the β₂-adrenergic receptor — have been associated with serious adverse asthma outcomes such as asthma-related hospitalization, need for intubation, and even death in some patients.

In February 2010, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) sought to improve the safety of LABAs by issuing a requirement for manufacturers of products containing LABAs to make changes in their labels with respect to asthma treatment. The changes included the contraindication of LABAs without the concomitant use of an asthma-controller medication (e.g., an inhaled corticosteroid) and . . .

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