Boehringer Ingelheim receives new EU backing for Spiriva Respimat

Boehringer Ingelheim has announced that its tiotropium-based drug Spiriva Respimat has been accepted by European regulators in a new indication.

The therapy is to be made available as an add-on maintenance bronchodilator treatment in adult patients with asthma who are currently treated with the maintenance combination of inhaled corticosteroids and long-acting beta2-agonists and who have experienced one or more severe exacerbations in the previous year.

Data from clinical trials has shown the drug can reduce the risk of patients having a severe asthma exacerbation by 21 percent when used as add-on therapy, while its safety performance has also been proven.

No new classes of inhaled treatment have been approved in asthma for over a decade, making this a noteworthy milestone.

Professor Klaus Dugi, chief medical officer at Boehringer Ingelheim, said: "With more than 90 years of experience in the field of respiratory diseases, Boehringer Ingelheim is committed to bringing new treatment options to physicians and patients, particularly in areas of high unmet medical need."

Tiotropium is already approved for the treatment of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, having demonstrated its efficacy in more than 190 clinical trials.