Boehringer Ingelheim drug shows benefits in new asthma trial

Boehringer Ingelheim has announced positive phase III clinical trial data for the innovative inhaler-based asthma therapy tiotropium.

Findings from a new subset of data from the UniTinA-asthma programme showed that tiotropium, delivered once daily using the company's Respimat inhaler, was able to significantly improve lung function and reduce asthma exacerbations in patients, irrespective of their allergic status.

The data showed that the drug could offer benefits for asthma sufferers who need additional asthma control options despite prior treatment with inhaled corticosteroids or long-acting beta 2-agonists.

These findings are also important as patients with asthma may respond differently to treatment based on their allergic status, making it essential for any new therapy to be evaluated among a wide range of subjects.

Professor Klaus Dugi, corporate senior vice-president for medicine at Boehringer Ingelheim, said: "We are encouraged by these findings, as they provide us with more information on the potential of tiotropium across new subsets of asthma patients."

This comes after the firm highlighted new clinical trial data for Pradaxa last week, showing the drug's benefits as a treatment for deep vein thrombosis and pulmonary embolism.