A Second Look at an Asthma Medication
Long-acting beta agonists, which can be risky if used alone, are getting renewed attention
The problem remains that, because some drugs are heavily marketed, patients ask their doctors to prescribe LABAs before they've ever tried taking an inhaled corticosteroid alone—or they get an LABA first because samples are readily available. "There is evidence that LABAs are still used as first-line therapy, even though the guidelines say they should only be used when other agents have failed," says Shelley Salpeter, a Stanford University School of Medicine clinical professor of medicine and lead author of a 2006 meta analysis published in the Annals of Internal Medicine that suggested that LABAs shouldn't be used in asthma treatment. Salpeter, who reports no ties to drug manufacturers, says she does not believe that "the benefits of LABAs are worth the risks, and I do not use them in my practice at all."
In any case, patients should not stop taking any asthma treatment without talking to their doctors first.
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