In a recent study, it was remarked that older asthmatic women who are on inhaled steroids are less likely to die from any ailment over five years when compared to women not using any kinds of inhaled steroids.

Two recent studies from Canada suggested that inhaled steroid therapy has benefits beyond the lungs, as per Dr. Carlos A. Camargo Jr., from Massachusetts General Hospital, Boston, and colleagues.

From Reuter.com:

Their findings stem from 2,671 women with persistent asthma participating in the Nurses’ Health Study who responded to a 1998 supplementary asthma questionnaire. Fifty-four percent of these women reported inhaled steroid use in 1998.

Over the next five years, 87 women (3.3 percent) died. Twenty two women died of cardiovascular causes, 31 from cancer, and 34 died from “other” causes (including 4 from asthma).

According to Camargo and colleagues, use of inhaled steroid therapy at the outset, relative to non-use, was associated with a significant 42 percent reduced likelihood of dying from any cause and a 65 percent reduced likelihood of dying from a heart-related cause.

During the study, it was remarked that the apparent non-pulmonary benefits of inhaled steroids remained continue to stay strong after the researchers controlled for different factors that had the abilities to possibly influence the research results.

The above findings clearly suggested that benefits of an early inhaled steroid therapy in the long run have the unique ability to go much beyond asthma management in an effective manner.

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