Safety and effectiveness in children six months to 12 months of age has been evaluated but not established. Safety and effectiveness in children 12 months to 8 years of age have been established [see Error! Hyperlink reference not valid. (Error! Hyperlink reference not valid.), and Error! Hyperlink reference not valid.(Error! Hyperlink reference not valid.)].

A 12-week study in 141 pediatric patients 6 to 12 months of age with mild to moderate asthma or recurrent/persistent wheezing was conducted. All patients were randomized to receive either 0.5 mg or 1 mg of budesonide inhalation suspension or placebo. 

Adrenal-axis function was assessed with an ACTH stimulation test at the beginning and end of the study, and mean changes from baseline in this variable did not indicate adrenal suppression in patients who received budesonide inhalation suspension versus placebo. However, on an individual basis, 7 patients in this study (6 in the budesonide inhalation suspension treatment arms and 1 in the placebo arm) experienced a shift from having a normal baseline stimulated cortisol level to having a subnormal level at Week 12 [see Error! Hyperlink reference not valid. (Error! Hyperlink reference not valid.)]. Pneumonia was observed more frequently in patients treated with budesonide inhalation suspension than in patients treated with placebo, (N = 2, 1, and 0) in the budesonide inhalation suspension 0.5 mg, 1 mg, and placebo groups, respectively.

A dose dependent effect on growth was also noted in this 12-week trial. Infants in the placebo arm experienced an average growth of 3.7 cm over 12 weeks compared with 3.5 cm and 3.1 cm in the budesonide inhalation suspension 0.5 mg and 1 mg arms respectively. This corresponds to estimated mean (95% CI) reductions in 12-week growth velocity between placebo and budesonide inhalation suspension 0.5 mg of 0.2 cm (-0.6 to 1.0) and between placebo and budesonide inhalation suspension 1 mg of 0.6 cm (-0.2 to 1.4). These findings support that the use of budesonide inhalation suspension in infants 6 to 12 months of age may result in systemic effects and are consistent with findings of growth suppression in other studies with inhaled corticosteroids.

Controlled clinical studies have shown that inhaled corticosteroids may cause a reduction in growth velocity in pediatric patients. In these studies, the mean reduction in growth velocity was approximately one centimeter per year (range 0.3 to 1.8 cm per year) and appears to be related to dose and duration of exposure. This effect has been observed in the absence of laboratory evidence of hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal (HPA)-axis suppression, suggesting that growth velocity is a more sensitive indicator of systemic corticosteroid exposure in pediatric patients than some commonly used tests of HPA-axis function. The long-term effects of this reduction in growth velocity associated with orally inhaled corticosteroids, including the impact on final adult height, are unknown. The potential for “catch up” growth following discontinuation of treatment with orally inhaled corticosteroids has not been adequately studied.

In a study of asthmatic children 5 to 12 years of age, those treated with budesonide administered via a dry powder inhaler 200 mcg twice daily (n=311) had a 1.1-centimeter reduction in growth compared with those receiving placebo (n=418) at the end of one year; the difference between these two treatment groups did not increase further over three years of additional treatment. By the end of four years, children treated with the budesonide dry powder inhaler and children treated with placebo had similar growth velocities. Conclusions drawn from this study may be confounded by the unequal use of corticosteroids in the treatment groups and inclusion of data from patients attaining puberty during the course of the study. 

The growth of pediatric patients receiving inhaled corticosteroids, including budesonide inhalation suspension should be monitored routinely (e.g., via stadiometry). The potential growth effects of prolonged treatment should be weighed against clinical benefits obtained and the risks and benefits associated with alternative therapies. To minimize the systemic effects of inhaled corticosteroids, including budesonide inhalation suspension, each patient should be titrated to his/her lowest effective dose [see Error! Hyperlink reference not valid. (Error! Hyperlink reference not valid.) andError! Hyperlink reference not valid. (Error! Hyperlink reference not valid.)].