Experimental Heat Therapy Reduces Symptoms of Severe Asthma, Researchers Say

A new and experimental treatment which uses heat to reduce constriction of the airways in people with severe asthma appears to help those who have not benefitted from traditional asthma drugs, new research says.

In a clinical study, the device, called Alair and made by Asthmatx Inc. of Sunnyvale, Calif., was shown to dramatically reduce the rates of severe asthma attacks and emergency room visits in patients with severe asthma. Alair cut the rate of extreme asthma attacks by 32 percent and trimmed the number of asthma-related ER visits by 84 percent, according to researchers from Washington University in St. Louis.

Alair uses a thin tube to heat the walls of the air passages in the lungs and reduce the muscle tissue that can narrow the airways of asthmatics. The device is approved for use in Europe but not in the United States. Asthmatx has applied for U.S. Food and Drug Administration approvals for Alair and a decision is expected sometime this Fall, officials said.

Study of Severe Asthmatics

The research team tested the devices in 297 patients with severe asthma. Some participants were treated with Alair while others were treated with a placebo device in which no actual heat was applied. Patients were then followed for a year.

The result was significant improvement in those treated with Alair compared to those who received placebo treatment, the researchers said.

All patients in the study were taking Advair or another type of inhaled combination of corticosteroid and a long-acting beta-agonist. However, the drugs alone did not provide the patients with adequate relief, researchers said.

Alair treatment benefitted those patients who were not seeing the same results from Advair or similar drugs alone. While patients with asthma triggered by allergies may see relief from Xolair or omalizumab, not all asthmatics have asthma that is caused by allergies, researchers said.

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