Recent evidence for stepping down severe asthma therapies

Biologics have proven safe and effective for severe asthma. Their introduction has offered hope for patients and prescribers with a growing list of novel medications and indications. While 'step-up' indications for biologic initiation are well described in guidelines, 'step-down' strategy remains poorly understood and thus guidance is limited. In this opinion article we aim to focus on recent practice changing evidence for stepping-down severe asthma management, tools for the assessment of biologic efficacy, propose a framework for the step-down of biologic and nonbiologic therapies and suggest topics of interest for future research.

Clinical tools have been developed to aid in assessing biologic response. Some patients experience marked improvement and may enter a period of clinical remission or even complete remission. Following positive response, add-on therapy may safely be approached for taper or withdrawal.

There is limited consensus but growing evidence for stepping-down therapies in patients who achieve clinical response and/or remission after biologic initiation. Further structured guidance would benefit clinicians who face clinical uncertainty when deciding to step-down therapy in patients with well controlled asthma.