A study outlining the use of weekly azithromycin for COPD patients with frequent exacerbations\u00a0was published recently in the world’s leading general medical journal, Lancet. \u201cFrequent\u201d was\u00a0defined as three or more episodes in a year of these episodes of sustained worsening of these\u00a0patients\u2019 conditions.<\/p>\n
Several cogent reasons warrant attempting to prevent these exacerbations. First and foremost,\u00a0they make the patient sick and can lead to hospitalization, and sometimes to death. Also, each\u00a0exacerbation can worsen the overall degree of lung impairment, kind of a racheting down in\u00a0lung function. The patients in the year-long Lancet study were treated with 500 mg. a day of\u00a0azithromycin for the first three days of each week.<\/p>\n
This particular drug was chosen because it has immunomodulatory properties. That is, it works\u00a0not only as an antimicrobial, but also as an anti-inflammatory. It is concentrated 200 times in the\u00a0white blood cells, which go to the bronchial tissues. It also has a long half-life of about 70 hours\u00a0after a dose.<\/p>\n
Patients in the trial had 58 percent fewer exacerbations. \u00a0Additionally, this benefit lasted for\u00a0more than six months after the drug was stopped.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
A study outlining the use of weekly azithromycin for COPD patients with frequent exacerbations\u00a0was published recently in the world’s leading general medical journal, Lancet. \u201cFrequent\u201d was\u00a0defined as three or more episodes in a year of these episodes of sustained worsening of these\u00a0patients\u2019 conditions. Several cogent reasons warrant attempting to prevent these exacerbations. First and foremost,\u00a0they make the patient sick and can lead to hospitalization, and sometimes to death. Also, each\u00a0exacerbation can worsen the overall degree of lung impairment, kind of…<\/p>\n