A Cochrane review [Abstract] 1 included 15 studies with a total of 1422 subjects. Two large long term studies used nedocromil for six months and four to six years and showed conflicting results in symptom free days. Short term studies (duration between 4 weeks to 12 weeks) showed that nedocromil sodium produced some improvement in a number of efficacy measures compared to placebo including FEV1, FVC, FEV1 % predicted, PC20 FEV1, evening PEF and symptom scores. Nedocromil sodium has a good safety profile. The only significant side effect observed was unpleasant taste.
Comment: The quality of evidence is downgraded by indirectness (lung function rather than freedom from symptoms as the end point) and by heterogeneity. There was little evidence for a clinically dose response effect and only a few studies recruited participants with severe asthma.
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