Conditions: Asthma COPD
Allocation: RANDOMIZED | Intervention model: PARALLEL
Enrollment: 6
Healthy volunteers: no

Brief summary:
The purpose of the proposed study is to determine whether the addition of inhaled corticosteroids to treatment with oral corticosteroids and albuterol would reduce repeat emergency department (ED) visits among patients treated for acute exacerbations of asthma and COPD discharged from the emergency department to home. The investigators hypothesize that patients treated with inhaled corticosteroids in addition to oral corticosteroids and albuterol will have lower rates of 30-day return visits to the emergency department than those patients treated with oral corticosteroids and albuterol only.

Detailed description:

Arms:
arm 1: Standard of Care: 30 day albuterol inhaler plus non-tapering course of oral prednisone (50 mg/d) for 4 days (1st dose will have been given in the ED)

Spacers will be dispensed with all multiple dose inhalers (MDI) to promote proper use and administration of inhaled medications. arm 2: Treatment: 30 day QVAR® (beclamethasone dipropionate) inhaler (80 mcg, 1 puff twice daily) plus 30 day albuterol inhaler plus non-tapering course of oral prednisone (50 mg/d) for 5 days

Spacers will be dispensed with all multiple dose inhalers (MDI) to promote proper use and administration of inhaled medications.

Interventions: intervention 1: beclamethasone dipropionate intervention 2: albuterol intervention 3: Prednisone
Intervention descriptions: intervention 1: Inhaler intervention 2: Inhaler intervention 3: Oral corticosteroid

Protocol document: