Optimising treatment for COPD--new strategies for combination therapy

Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) is a multi-component disease characterised by airflow limitation and airway inflammation. Exacerbations of COPD have a considerable impact on the quality of life, daily activities and general well-being of patients and are a great burden on the health system. Thus, the aims of COPD management include not only relieving symptoms and preventing disease progression but also preventing and treating exacerbations. Attention towards the day-to-day burden of the disease is also required in light of evidence that suggests COPD may be variable throughout the day with morning being the time when symptoms are most severe and patients' ability to perform regular morning activities the most problematic. While available therapies improve clinical symptoms and decrease airway inflammation, they do not unequivocally slow long-term progression or address all disease components. With the burden of COPD continuing to increase, research into new and improved treatment strategies to optimise pharmacotherapy is ongoing - in particular, combination therapies, with a view to their complementary modes of action enabling multiple components of the disease to be addressed. Evidence from recent clinical trials indicates that triple therapy, combining an anticholinergic with an inhaled corticosteroid and a long-acting beta(2)-agonist, may provide clinical benefits additional to those associated with each treatment alone in patients with more severe COPD. This article reviews the evidence for treatment strategies used in COPD with a focus on combination therapies and introduces the 3-month CLIMB study (Evaluation of Efficacy and Safety of Symbicort as an Add-on Treatment to Spiriva in Patients With Severe COPD) which investigated the potential treatment benefits of combining tiotropium with budesonide/formoterol in patients with COPD with regard to lung function, exacerbations, symptoms and morning activities.