Antibiotic, telithromycin, can help some patients with asthma
An international study of 278 patients in 70 centers, an antibiotic, telithromycin reduced asthma symptoms and lung function improves. The researchers also discovered that the drug improves recovery times. Telithromycin is currently used for the treatment of sinusitis. You can read about this study in the New England Journal of Medicine (NEJM). To participate in the study involved patients treated within 24 hours of an acute attack of asthma. Half of the patients was administered 800 mg of telithromycin, while the other half received a placebo.The treatment lasted 10 days.Both groups also received a treatment of asthma in general. (Placebo, a drug false. It has no active ingredient. It is a product with no medicinal value. A placebo is used to compare their results with
those of a drug. The group taking the placebo is often called a control) telithromycin group experienced better lung function than the control group (improvement in lung function twice as well). Telithromycin group recovered from an acute attack of five days for the control group had eight days.Lung capacity tests showed that both groups have the same (no improvement) were.The result surprised many people because they think it is more severe asthma caused by viral infections. Antibiotics should not have any effect on viral infections. (Antibiotics are used for non-target bacteria, viruses) Two bacteria, Chlamydia pneumoniae and Mycoplasma pneumoniae were present in 61% of patients. Scientists believe that antibiotics have attacked these bacteria, and this has helpedpatients. If Chlamydophila pneumoniae and Mycoplasma pneumoniae contribute to the severity of an asthma attack, and then giving the patient Telithromycin may help reduce its effect, the researchers say.They believe also improve recovery time due to the antiinflammatory effects of antibiotics.
All researchers involved in this study agreed that further research is needed.