Oral CorticoSteroid sparing with biologics in severe asthma: A remark of the Severe Asthma Network in Italy (SANI)
Giorgio Walter Canonica, Francesco Blasi, Pierluigi Paggiaro, Gianenrico Senna, Giovanni Passalacqua, Antonio Spanevello, Stefano Aliberti, Diego Bagnasco, Marco Bonavia, Matteo Bonini, Luisa Brussino, Caterina Bucca, Maria Filomena Caiaffa, Cecilia Calabrese, Gianna Camiciottoli, Marco Caminati, Giovanna Elisiana Carpagnano, Cristiano Caruso, Stefano Centanni, Maria Elisabetta Conte, Angelo Guido Corsico, Lorenzo Cosmi, Maria Teresa Costantino, Nunzio Crimi, Simona D’Alò, Maria D'Amato, Stefano Del Giacco, Alessandro Farsi, Elisabetta Favero, Maria Pia Foschino Barbaro, Gabriella Guarnieri, Giuseppe Guida, Manuela Latorre, Salvatore Lo Cicero, Carlo Lombardi, Luigi Macchia, Francesco Mazza, Francesco Menzella, Manlio Milanese, Marcello Montagni, Paolo Montuschi, Eleonora Nucera, Roberta Parente, Vincenzo Patella, Girolamo Pelaia, Laura Pini, Francesca Puggioni, L Ricciardi, Fabio Luigi Massimo Ricciardolo, Luca Richeldi, Erminia Ridolo, Giovanni Rolla, Pierachille Santus, Nicola Scichilone, Giuseppe Spadaro, Andrea Vianello, Vittorio Viviano, Mona‐Rita Yacoub, Maria Cristina Zappa, Enrico Heffler
Abstract
According to the data derived from several national and international registries, including SANI (Severe Asthma Network Italy), and considering the strong impact that frequent or regular use of oral corticosteroid has on quality of life (QoL) of severe asthmatics, as well as on the costs for managing corticosteroid-related diseases, oral corticosteroid sparing up to withdrawal should be considered a primary outcome in the management of severe asthma. New biologics have clearly demonstrated that this effect is possible, with concomitant reduction in the rate of exacerbations and in symptom control. Then, there is no reason for using so frequently oral corticosteroid before having explored all alternatives currently available for a large part of severe asthmatics.