FLOVENT inhalation aerosol now available in the United States; new medication is the first inhaled corticosteroid offering multiple strengths for customized asthma treatment.

RESEARCH TRIANGLE PARK, N.C.--(HealthWire)--Sept. 11, 1996-- Living with asthma is not easy -- just ask any of the estimated 15 million Americans who suffer from this chronic condition that often leaves them fighting for their next breath. Asthma is a disease that demands both serious attention and proper management to keep symptoms at bay. And, although it can't be cured, it can be controlled.

"If my asthma gets out of control, it can be scary," said Tina Nealy, an asthma sufferer from Denver, Colo. "I really have to keep on top of my condition so I don't live from one attack to another."

Asthma sufferers like Tina now have a new treatment option that can be personalized to their condition and keep their asthma under control -- effectively and conveniently. The first inhaled anti-inflammatory asthma medicine available in multiple strengths (44 mcg, 110 mcg, 220 mcg) in the U.S., FLOVENT(TM) (fluticasone propionate) Inhalation Aerosol is indicated as a preventive therapy for the maintenance treatment of asthma in patients 12 years and older. Anti-inflammatory therapy works to reduce airway inflammation, the underlying cause of asthma.

FLOVENT is the first inhaled corticosteroid introduced in the last 10 years. FLOVENT offers the benefits of improved lung function with minimal potential for side effects and a convenient dosing schedule. FLOVENT also is indicated for patients who require oral corticosteroid therapy for asthma, many of whom may be able to reduce or eliminate their need for oral corticosteroids over time. (Oral corticosteroids, which often are associated with more side effects, are taken in pill form and travel through the bloodstream to reach the lungs. Inhaled corticosteroids are topical medications, meaning they act directly on inflamed airways with much lower concentrations absorbed into the bloodstream.) FLOVENT should not be used to relieve acute asthma symptoms.

"FLOVENT is the first of a new generation of anti-inflammatory treatment -- one that is highly effective at lower doses with a favorable safety profile," said Paul Chervinsky, M.D., president of the New England Research Center in Dartmouth, Mass., and a clinical investigator for FLOVENT. "In fact, FLOVENT significantly improved lung function and decreased both nighttime awakenings and albuterol use in patients who switched from other inhaled corticosteroid therapy."

Other inhaled corticosteroids are available only in one dosing strength. The three dosing options of FLOVENT allow patients to receive the proper amount of medication based on their disease severity. Experts agree classifying asthma by severity is important when considering treatment. The common descriptions (mild, moderate and severe) are useful because asthma therapy should be individualized.

"FLOVENT offers convenient, effective asthma control with a favorable safety profile," said Harold Nelson, M.D., senior clinical staff physician at the National Jewish Center for Immunology and Respiratory Medicine in Denver, and a clinical investigator for FLOVENT. "Treatment can be customized to match a patient's needs and minimize the number of inhalations needed to achieve optimal control."

According to Dr. Nelson, it is not uncommon for patients with moderate to severe asthma currently to require numerous inhalations of a medication four times a day. With FLOVENT, effective asthma control is achieved at lower doses, so that most patients only take two puffs twice a day. The ease of twice-daily dosing may enhance patients' compliance.

Another advantage of treatment with FLOVENT is that patients with asthma may experience improvement in their condition within 24 hours of their first dose, an important consideration when treating a patient who may abandon medication that does not offer relatively rapid control. Of course, onset of action and degree of symptom relief may vary from patient to patient and maximum benefit may not be achieved for one to two weeks or longer.

Asthma is considered a disease with two components -- bronchospasm, or the constriction of the muscles that line the airways, and inflammation of the airways. Airway inflammation makes the lungs more susceptible to bronchospasm, resulting in asthma symptoms. According to the National Institutes of Health's Global Initiative for Asthma, corticosteroids are the most effective anti-inflammatory medications available for asthma treatment. Studies have demonstrated their efficacy in improving lung function, decreasing airway hyperresponsiveness (twitchy-ness), reducing symptoms and reducing the frequency and severity of asthma attacks.

Approved in more than 36 countries, FLOVENT has a favorable safety profile. The most common side effects seen in clinical trials were upper respiratory infections, sore throat, nasal congestion and discharge, oral candidiasis, sinusitis, hoarseness and headache. Not all these were drug-related or more common than those associated with placebo. FLOVENT also has proven its clinical safety by demonstrating minimal potential for causing systemic side effects, since it undergoes virtually complete first-pass metabolism.

Glaxo Wellcome is the nation's leading research-based pharmaceutical firm, with U.S. headquarters in Research Triangle Park, N.C. A subsidiary of London-based Glaxo Wellcome plc, the company is committed to fighting disease by bringing innovative medicines and services to patients and to the health care providers who serve them.

CONTACT: Glaxo Wellcome, Research Triangle Park

Ramona Jones, 919/483-2839