History and Concerns
Salmeterol, marketed and manufactured by GlaxoSmithKline, in the 1980s and was released as Serevent in 1990. The product is marketed by GSK under the Allen & Hanburys brand in the UK.
In November 2005, the US Food and Drug Administration released a health advisory, alerting the public to findings that show the use of long-acting β2-agonists could lead to a worsening of symptoms, and in some cases death.
While the use of inhaled LABAs are still recommended in asthma guidelines for the resulting improved symptom control, further concerns have been raised, by a large meta-analysis of the pooled results from 19 trials with 33,826 participants, that salmeterol may increase the small risks of asthma deaths, and this additional risk is not reduced with the additional use of inhaled steroids (e.g., as with the combination product Fluticasone/salmeterol). This seems to occur because although LABAs relieve asthma symptoms, they also promote bronchial inflammation and sensitivity without warning.
Read more about this topic: Salmeterol
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