Irish medical journal
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Irish medical journal · May 2016
The Efficacy of Bronchial Thermoplasty for Severe Persistent Asthma: The First National Experience.
There is an unmet need for new therapies in severe persistent asthma. Bronchial thermoplasty is a bronchoscopic procedure which employs radiofrequency energy to reduce airway smooth muscle and has been demonstrated to improve symptomatic control in severe persistent asthma in other populations. Seven patients have completed bronchial thermoplasty at a tertiary referral centre in Ireland. ⋯ Significant improvements were demonstrated in mean Asthma Control Test scores, from 8.9 to 14.7 (p = 0.036). Trends towards improvement were seen in mean hospitalisations (respective values for total in 12 month period 5.0, 0.9; p = 0.059) and PEFR (181.4 l/min, 280 l/min respectively; p = 0.059). These data support the use of bronchial thermoplasty in severe persistent asthma in the Irish population.