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Should physicians still be prescribing steroid inhalers as a first-line treatment for COPD?

Many people with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease are given steroids despite a lack of evidence underpinning their use.
  1. Julianna Photopoulos

    1. Julianna Photopoulos is a science journalist near Thessaloniki, Greece.

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Two inhalers hover in the centre, releasing clouds of swirling medication that contain ticks, crosses, and plus and minus signs

Credit: Sam Chivers

The first inhaled corticosteroids were developed in 1972 for use in people with asthma. The drugs, which tackle inflammation in the airways, were revolutionary in reducing the number of hospital admissions and deaths due to asthma.

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Nature 581, S12-S13 (2020)

doi: https://doi.org/10.1038/d41586-020-01376-8

This article is part of Nature Outlook: COPD, an editorially independent supplement produced with the financial support of third parties. About this content.

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