Many clinicians are reluctant to prescribe systemic corticosteroids to manage and asthmatic attack because of many complications such as osteoporosis, cushing's syndrome, diabetes, hypertension and blee ding tendency. The use of nebulized budesonide may be of value in some infants, old men, and in particular adult asthmatic patients who complain of severe dyspnea. A clinical validation and steroid-sparing effect of nebulized budesonide in asthmatic adults and COPD were evaluated, and the short-term effects of budesonide use on the HPA axis were assessed.

Study A was propectively done with 41 patients diagnosed with pure asthma and 30 patients diagnosed wit COPD (including asthmatic component) in Soonchunhyang Hospital, Chunan from June. 2000 to Sep. 2001. They were treated with nebulized budesonide including sytemic steroids (Group 1), a budesonide tubuhaler including a sytemic steroid (Group 2), or only the systemic steroid (Group3). The peak flow rate, arterial blood gas in room air, pulmonary function test, symptom scoring, steroid amount and hospital stay were analyzed. Study B was conducted with 19 patients to evaluate the short-term effects on the HPA axis of treatment with nebulized budesonide 1mg twice daily and a budesonide turbuhaler 5 puffs twice daily. The adrenal function was assessed prior to budesonide inhalation and after 7 days of budesonide inhalation.

In the pure asthmatic patients, the mean value of the symptoms (dyspnea, wheezing, cough, night asthma) or the arterial BGAs, total amounts of steroid or hospital stay and the difference in the results of the pulmonary function tests or peak expiratory flow rate were similar in the three groups. In COPD with an asthmatic component, there were no significant differences among the three groups. Although nebulized budesonide suppressed HPA function, (p=0.006) the HPA responses from the nebulized budesonide and turbuhaler budesonide were similar (p=0.288).

This result suggests that systemic steroid should only be made available for acute asthmatic patients irrespective of the inhaled budesonides. Nebulized budesonide at the therapeutic dose has similar effects on the HPA axis compared to that of turbuhaler budesonide.