
Efficacy and Safety Study of Procaterol Hydrochloride to Treat Patients With Cough Variant Asthma...
Cough Variant AsthmaThe purpose of this study is to investigate the efficacy and safety of procaterol hydrochloride with inhaled glucocorticoid in treatment patients with cough variant asthma (CVA).

Study of Treatment of Depression in Refractory Asthma
AsthmaPurpose and design: The relationship between psychological morbidity and asthma has been previously recognised, however there is little evidence regarding the link between poor mental health and asthma control in people with severe asthma. If evidence was available showing that identifying and treating depression, resulted in meaningful improvements in people's asthma symptoms, this would be helpful in changing doctors' approach to people with severe asthma, ensuring that both physical and mental wellbeing were considered. This study will be a double blind randomised placebo controlled pilot study which aims to identify; if treating depression in patients with well characterised refractory asthma improves depression and asthma control. Forty patients who meet the inclusion criteria will be randomised to either a placebo or anti-depressant medication group, neither the participant nor the researcher will be aware of which medication they are given. Patients recruited will have severe asthma; will be identified as having depression using two validated questionnaires and will agree to take part and to take anti-depressant medication. Patients with poor adherence to medication, other respiratory conditions and who have had anti-depressant medication in previous the 6 months will be excluded. Outcome measures such as depression questionnaires, quality of life questionnaire, lung function, measures of airways inflammation and reduction in dose of oral steroids will be used to determine the effect of anti-depressant medication on depression and asthma control. The treatment period will be 12 weeks with outcomes assessed in the first and final week of treatment. The investigators hope to find out if the study protocol we have devised is feasible for a larger multi-Centre clinical trial and demonstrate some evidence that treating depression in subjects with well characterised refractory asthma will improve depression and asthma symptom control (this will be used to estimate the size of a larger clinical trial). Recruitment: Participants will be identified and approached by a member of their usual healthcare team and invited to participate. Participants will be given time to consider whether they wish to take part and will assured that their care will be unaffected should they choose not to participate or to withdraw during the study period. Inclusion/exclusion: All patients will be assessed using our well established systematic evaluation protocol. Refractory asthma will be based on the definition of the American Thoracic Society Consensus Workshop. Patients recruited will have refractory asthma, will be identified as having depression using two validated questionnaires and will agree to take part and to take anti-depressant medication. Patients with poor adherence to medication, other respiratory conditions and who have had anti-depressant medication in previous the 6 months will be excluded. Consent: People who are unable to give informed consent will be excluded from the study as they may be particularly vulnerable. Capacity to give informed consent will be assessed by the participant's usual healthcare professionals. Risks, burdens and benefits There is a small risk of agitation and suicidal ideation associated with commencement of selective serotonin reuptake inhibition (SSRI) anti-depressants. The investigators will attempt to minimise this risk by: Contacting participants 1 week after commencing treatment and 1 week after any subsequent dose increase to ensure there is no suggestion of agitation or suicidal ideation. This is in accordance with the guidelines for initiation of SSRI therapy in adults. Participants will also be contacted weekly for 2 weeks after discontinuation of study treatment. If depressive symptoms worsen patients will be advised to liaise with their GP to consider institution of treatment on clinical grounds.

Stress Management Intervention in Inner City Adolescents With Asthma
AsthmaPsychosocial StressThe study will utilize a stress management program delivered over 10 sessions that is hypothesized to result in decreased stress levels and improved coping strategies in an inner city adolescent asthma population. Participants will include adolescents ages 10-15 years with physician diagnosed asthma. The outcome measures will be obtained via psychosocial questionnaires and spirometry.

mRNA Expression as a Biomarker of Omalizumab Response
AsthmaObjectives: 1. Determine if mRNA expression could be use as a biomarker to predict and monitor the response to omalizumab in patients with difficult control asthma 2. Identify which genes are switched on and which are switched off by using Omalizumab. Methods: This study is an open label clinical trial, with six patients. The patients will receive Omalizumab according to their age and weight (maximum dose: 375 mg every 15 days) for 4 months. There will be a run-in period of one month, when allergic asthma diagnosis will be confirmed and treatment will be optimized. Patients will be evaluated and will have blood sample collected on 3 occasions: in the beginning, 2 months after baseline and at the end of the study. Blood samples will always be collected one week after the last omalizumab dose. Primary outcome will be RNA expression of 20 genes measured by real time-PCR (high-affinity IgE receptor, IL-4, IL-5, IL-13, gama-IFN, quimokines, Fc epsilon, between others). Secondary outcomes will be ACT, ACQ and spirometry.

Efficacy of Mobile Phone Short Message Service (SMS) Reminder and Consultation on Asthma Control...
AsthmaAsthma is the disease being studied. The main objective of this study is to assess the clinical efficacy of mobile phone short message service (SMS) reminder and consultation on the self-management and outcomes of poorly controlled asthma which is first diagnosed in a time period of 3 months. The secondary objective is to explore the cost-benefit and cost-effectiveness of the proposed intervention. Aims: The main aim of this study is to assist asthma patients to practice asthma self-management at home by sending reminders and responding to patients' consultations with mobile phone short message service (SMS), which will eventually help them to control their asthma, and prevent asthma exacerbation. Thus, the ultimate goal of this proposed study is to improve patient health outcome via enhancing patient-physician interaction through mobile phone short message service (SMS) that is low-cost and could be followed easily by the patients and their physicians. The hypothesis is that asthma patients who receive weekly text message reminders to educate them and reinforce adherence will have better asthma outcome, such as asthma control, while the intervention integrating patient consultation and reminders by SMS improve asthma outcome even more. The investigators further hypothesize that these subjects under intervention will have an improvement in secondary measures including quality of life and patient satisfaction. The investigators also anticipate that such an approach in asthma management will be cost-effective.

Effect of Montelukast in Asthma in Children
Bronchial AsthmaThis is 9 month, placebo-controlled, double blind, randomised trial using the oral leucotrienes receptor antagonist montelukast (5 mg) in 160 children with mild and moderate asthma age 6-14 year old, sensitive to house dust mite. There are two study groups: montelukast group 80 patients and placebo group 80 patients. All patients will receive budesonide in dose sufficient to control asthma symptoms and short-acting beta agonist as needed. Medication used in the study: montelukast 5mg, budesonide. There are 7 doctor's visits - one initial visit (June) and 6 follow-up visits. First visit is on the first day of asthma symptom and each follow-up visit is every 6 weeks. Children with full asthma control (as measured by exhaled NO) had administered 100 mcg lower dose of budesonide and children with not fully control asthma had administered 100 mcg higher dose of budesonide.

Efficacy and Safety Study of Budesonide Novolizer Dry Powder Inhaler 200μg to Treat Chinese Patients...
AsthmaThis is an open-label, randomized, parallel Group, multicenter study to evaluate the efficacy and safety of budesonide novolizer dry powder inhaler compared with budesonide turbuhaler dry powder inhaler in Chinese mild to moderate asthma patients.

Safety Study of Anti-Asthma Agent BMEC-1217B
AsthmaBMEC-1217B is an abbreviated version of an old Chinese formulation. The ratio of each component was adopted by the sponsor following the observation that BMEC-1217B prepared from this ratio resulted in best pharmacological profile and in vitro bioactivities. BMEC-1217B was studied for the pharmacological activity on the release of cysteinyl leukotrienes, IL-4 and TNF-alpha in vitro and the airway hyperreactivity. The result indicated that BMEC-1217B can inhibit the synthesis of several key pro-inflammatory mediators involved in the pathophysiology of allergic asthma and can also improve lung function in a mouse model of allergic asthma. The purpose of this study is to evaluate the safety and tolerability of increasing dose of BMEC-1217B when administered orally in healthy volunteers.

A Clinical Study of Oglemilast in Patients With Mild to Moderate Persistent Asthma
AsthmaThe study is aimed at evaluating efficacy and safety of oglemilast in the treatment of stable mild to moderate persistent asthma. The study involves two weeks of run in period. This is a placebo controlled study. One of the four treatment arms is placebo. The duration of treatment is 12 weeks.

Nebulized Magnesium Sulfate as an Adjunct to Standard Therapy in Asthma Exacerbation
AsthmaThe purpose of this study is to investigate the effectiveness of nebulized magnesium sulfate in patient with moderate to severe asthma exacerbation in pediatric emergency