Anti‐Inflammatory Reliever Therapy in Asthma: A Review

Anti‐inflammatory reliever (AIR) therapy is the use of a combination 2‐in‐1 inhaler which includes a corticosteroid and a fast‐onset beta 2 ‐agonist, as a reliever therapy in asthma. The clinical research of its use to date has primarily involved the inhaled corticosteroid (ICS) budesonide together with the long‐acting beta 2 ‐agonist (LABA) formoterol, and budesonide with the short‐acting beta 2 ‐agonist (SABA) albuterol (salbutamol). Based on high‐quality evidence from randomised controlled trials of a substantial reduction in the risk of severe exacerbations, New Zealand and international guidelines recommend ICS/formoterol as the preferred reliever inhaler for use by adolescents and adults with asthma, across the range of asthma severity, rather than SABA reliever‐based regimens. Recently, international guidelines have also recommended ICS/SABA reliever as an alternative to a SABA reliever. These recommendations represent the most important paradigm change in asthma management for decades.