COPD

Alternative COPD Treatment May Be Better Than Tiotropium

Aclidinium can improve bronchodilation and symptom control compared with tiotropium in patients with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), according to a recent post-hoc analysis.

The analysis is part of a prior phase IIIb study that evaluated patients with moderate to severe COPD, which showed that 6 weeks of aclidinium improved 24-hour bronchodilation compared with tiotropium and improved symptoms vs placebo.
________________________________________________________________________________________________

RELATED CONTENT
Physical Activity May Reduce Depression and Anxiety in COPD Patients
Could Pedometers Encourage Physical Activity in Patients with COPD?
________________________________________________________________________________________________

The current, post-hoc analysis included 277 patients with symptomatic COPD. During the 6-week trial, participants received aclidinium bromide, 400 µg twice daily, tiotropium, 18 µg once daily, or placebo. The researchers assessed lung function, COPD respiratory symptoms, and incidence of adverse events (AEs).

Results showed that aclidinium and tiotropium treatment improved forced expiratory volume in 1 second (FEV1) from baseline to week 6 at all time points over 24 hours vs placebo. Additionally, the researchers saw improvements in FEV1 from baseline during the nighttime period in patients receiving aclidinium vs those receiving tiotropium on day 1 and by week 6.

Aclidinium also improved trough FEV1 from baseline compared with tiotropium and placebo at day 1 and week 6. Aclidinium also improved severity of early morning and nighttime symptoms, limitation of early morning activities, and Evaluating Respiratory Symptoms and domain scores compared with tiotropium and placebo over 6 weeks. The researchers noted that tolerability demonstrated similar incidence of AEs in each patient population.

—Christina Vogt

Reference:

Beier J, Mroz R, Kirsten A-M, Chuecos F, Garcia Gil E. Improvement in 24-hour bronchodilation and symptom control with aclidinium bromide versus tiotropium and placebo in symptomatic patients with COPD: post hoc analysis of a phase IIIb study. Int J COPD. 2017;12(2017):1731-1740. doi:10.2147/COPD.S121723.