Breakthrough drug for COPD out

Two pharmaceutical companies, Boehringer Ingelheim and Pfizer, recently introduced Tiotropium, a novel drug that will provide remedy to patients suffering from Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disorder (COPD).

Tiotropium is the first once-daily inhaled therapy for the maintenance and treatment of COPD.

While it is less known than asthma, COPD is far more prevalent. World Health Organization (WHO) studies state that there are 600 million people suffering from COPD, although most remain undiagnosed.

Recent statistics show that COPD kills 2.74 million people each year throughout the world, and if the rate continues to rise, COPD will be the world’s third leading cause of death by 2020.

The Philippines is the first country in the Asia-Pacific and the second in the world, next to the Netherlands, to introduce Tiotropium. The drug was evaluated for safety and efficacy in more than 1,300 patients with COPD.

Tiotropium will be marketed under the name Spiriva, in a worldwide co-promotion by Boehringer Ingelheim and Pfizer Inc.

COPD is a slowly progressive airway disease that causes significant deterioration of lung function and consequently, disability and death. It is very common among smokers but exposure to pollution and heredity are also factors. It can interfere with simple routine activities like walking, climbing stairs or bending over. In severe cases, it leaves patients house-bound.

Tiotropium works by protecting the lung from bronchoconstriction by relaxing the muscle bands tightening around the airways, thus enabling increased airflow. The chemical compound targets symptoms better and lasts longer as it provides 24-hour bronchodilation with once-daily dosage as opposed to the commonly prescribed inhaled medication Atrovent which has to be taken four times a day.

Studies show that those who received tiotropium showed significant and sustained improvements in lung volumes and airflow, thus alleviating dyspnea or breathlessness, the most frequent and disabling symptom of COPD.