PharmacoEconomics & Outcomes News 436 - 1 Nov 2003

"Excessive" dosages of inhaledcorticosteroids in childhood

asthma?New Zealand children with asthma are prescribed

"excessive" dosages of fluticasone propionate, reportresearchers from New Zealand and Sweden.

They used data for individuals aged ≤ 17 yearsobtained from the RNZCGP* Research Unit and theNZHIS** Pharm Warehouse databases to examine thedosages prescribed and volumes dispensed for inhaledcorticosteroids (fluticasone propionate,beclomethasone and budesonide) over a period ofnearly 9 years (January 1993 until November 2001).

The study showed that an increased potency-adjusteddosage of fluticasone propionate, relative to that ofbeclomethasone or budesonide, was prescribed tothese paediatric individuals. The researchers point outthat the dose equivalence of these medications has aratio of 2:1:1 for fluticasone propionate,beclomethasone and budesonide, respectively, but thisdose-equivalence relationship does not appear to beapplied in paediatric practice.

The study also found that 46% of prescriptions forfluticasone propionate to children aged 0-5 years had amaximum daily dosage of > 250 µg/day. An overallincrease in the amount of inhaled corticosteroidsdispensed to children in New Zealand was observedwith the introduction of fluticasone propionate in NewZealand in January 1997, comment the researchers.* Royal New Zealand College of General Practitioners** New Zealand Health Information System

Johansson M, et al. Trends in the use of inhaled corticosteroids for childhoodasthma in New Zealand. European Journal of Clinical Pharmacology 59: 483-487,No. 5-6, Sep 2003 800955900

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PharmacoEconomics & Outcomes News 1 Nov 2003 No. 4361173-5503/10/0436-0001/$14.95 Adis © 2010 Springer International Publishing AG. All rights reserved