Efficacy of relative bronchodilatation of salbutamol and ipratropium in smokers and non-smokers with asthma

Abstract

Asthma is an age old disease with breathlessness and wheezing as a part of its clinical manifestations. Adrenergic drugs are also used as bronchodilators as they have a fast action. They are also useful in improving the mucilary transport and in the reduction in the release of inflammatory mediators. Sympathetic and parasympathetic mechanisms for airway calibre control were tested on 80 patients above the age of 18 years with bronchial asthma using salbutamol (beta 2 androgenic drug) and ipratropium bromide (anticholinergic drug). The base line values in our study, of the smokers and non-smokers on Day 1, where Salbutamol was given as the primary drug with Ipratropium as the second drug showed a significant difference in the FEV1, FVC and PEFR values, while there was no significant difference in the FEV1/FVC ratio. After giving salbutamol to the maximum effect, in comparison to the base line, there was a considerable improvement in all the values in both the smokers and non-smokers. But on giving Ipratropium, there was no further substantial improvement in the values in the non-smokers, but a significant improvement was seen among the smokers. On day two, there was a significant improvement in the FEV1, FVC, FEV1/FVC and PEFR values compared to the base line values, and on giving salbutamol, there was a substantial increase in the expiration volume in both smokers and non-smokers. In case of smoker asthmatics, a combination therapy of Salbutamol and Ipratropium is more useful.