Inhalation of budesonide, a drug commonly used for asthma, appears to have reduced the need for hospitalization for COVID-19. according to a study of the University of Oxford.
Researchers conducted a 28-day study among 148 patients, half of whom took 800 micrograms of the inhaled budesonide, which was sold as AstraZeneca’s Pulmicort, twice daily.
The findings suggest that inhaled budesonide reduced the risk of urgent care or hospitalization by 90 percent within the study period. The study also found that the drug had a “faster resolution of fever, symptoms and less persistent symptoms” after 28 days.
Oxford University said the trial was inspired by the fact that patients with chronic respiratory disease, often prescribed inhaled steroids, were underrepresented among those admitted to hospital early in the COVID-19 pandemic.
The findings were published on the preprinted server medRxiv, and was not judged by peers.
“The vaccination programs are really exciting, but we know it will take a while to reach everyone around the world,” Professor Mona Bafadhel, who led the trial, said in a statement. “I am delighted that a relatively safe, widely available and well-studied drug such as an inhaled steroid can have an effect on the pressure we experience during the pandemic.”
The trial was funded by the NIHR Biomedical Research Center and AstraZeneca, with which Oxford University compiled the COVID-19 vaccine AZD1222.