Related Experiment Video
Updated: Jul 20, 2026

Bronchial Thermoplasty: A Novel Therapeutic Approach to Severe Asthma
Published on: November 4, 2010
Inhaled corticosteroids vs leukotriene receptor antagonists: health care costs across varying asthma severities
Richard D O'Connor1, Bhash Parasuraman, Craig Roberts
1University of California-San Diego, USA.
Background:
The burden of asthma is substantial, and the overall cost of its management is growing.
Objective:
To compare asthma-related charges and resource utilization across disease severity levels in the year after initial asthma treatment with any inhaled corticosteroid (ICS) or leukotriene receptor antagonist (LTRA).
Methods:
This was a longitudinal, retrospective cohort study of claims data from managed care plans in the United States. All patients had a new prescription for an ICS or an LTRA between January 1999 and December 2000 and were enrolled in a managed care plan for at least 12 months before (preindex) and 12 months after (postindex) the initial claim. Asthma-related charges, hospitalizations, emergency department (ED) visits, physician visits, and asthma medication use were compared between the 2 cohorts. Propensity scores were calculated to control for baseline differences in patient characteristics and types of health care coverage.
Results:
Claims from 31,860 patients were evaluated. Total postindex asthma-related charges were significantly lower in the ICS cohort than in the LTRA cohort (dollars 613 vs dollars 902, respectively; P < .001), as were asthma-related pharmacy charges (dollars 305 vs dollars 564, respectively; P < .001). Results were consistent for all propensity subclasses and all age groups.
Conclusions:
Results from this cohort study suggest that, across varying disease severities, treating asthma with an ICS as initial controller therapy leads to less health care resource utilization than does using an LTRA as initial therapy.
Related Concept Videos
Antiasthma Drugs: Leukotriene Modifiers
Leukotriene modifiers work through two distinct mechanisms:
Antiasthma Drugs: Inhaled Corticosteroids and Glucocorticoids
ICS work through a multifaceted mechanism of action. They suppress the inflammatory response caused by the proliferation of TH cells. They also reduce the transcription of the IL-2 gene, which is involved in the...
Asthma-IV: Diagnostic and Management
Clinical Assessment for Asthma:
This is the first step in diagnosing and managing asthma. It includes:
Drugs Used in Lower Respiratory Disorders: Overview
Bronchodilators, the first step of respiration enhancement, come in various forms, each with its own mechanism...
Antiasthma Drugs: β2-Adrenoceptor Agonists
One class of bronchodilators includes β2-adrenoceptor agonists. These agents target the β2-adrenoceptors located on bronchial smooth muscle cells. By stimulating these receptors, β2-agonists induce relaxation in these...
COPD: Management Using Bronchodilators and Corticosteroids