Formoterol for the Treatment of Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease.

ABSTRACT: Bronchodilators, including long-acting β₂-agonists and long-acting muscarinic antagonists, are the mainstay for treatment of patients with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) to prevent exacerbations or reduce symptoms. Formoterol is a highly selective and potent β₂-agonist that relaxes airway smooth muscle to significantly improve lung function. Inhaled formoterol works within 5 minutes of administration and provides improvements in spirometry measurements over 12 hours. The lipophilicity of formoterol allows it to form a depot within the smooth muscle to provide a prolonged duration of action. Following therapeutic doses, plasma concentrations are very low or undetectable. Determination of the pharmacokinetics of formoterol following high-dose administratio

SUBMITTER: Tashkin DP 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC7708267 | biostudies-literature | 2020

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature