British researchers found they could improve children’s asthma control by using drugs suited to their specific genome.
Long-acting β2 agonists are used as an alternative to increasing the dose of inhaled corticosteroids if a standard dose provides inadequate asthma control. However, LABAs are less effective in people with the Arg16 β2 receptor genotype, approximately 15% of the population.
The research found that children with the different gene who were given a LTRA instead of a LABA showed improved asthma control and missed fewer days of school.