QVAR™ is the first aerosol spray capable of delivering medication to all parts of the lung including the smallest of breathing tubes. "Both the large and small airways in the lungs play an important role in asthma but current inhalers fail to deliver medication to the smallest of airways or breathing tubes," states Dr. Kenneth Chapman, Director of the Asthma Centre at Toronto Western Hospital. QVAR™ can ensure drug delivery to the smaller airways, sites of inflammation that are difficult to reach and it reverses the pattern of distribution of present inhalers by delivering more medication to the lungs and less to the mouth and throat. And it does all this using half the dose of most other conventional, preventative inhalers. Dr. Chapman continues, "QVAR's™ extrafine particles - which are about a third the size of those of conventional inhalers are responsible for the improved delivery of medicine to the lung and for improvements in asthma control."

QVAR™ has been approved by Health Canada and is indicated for the preventive management of mild, moderate or severe steroid responsive bronchial asthma and contains the safe and effective corticosteroid beclomethasone dipropionate (BDP).

"With the increase in asthma rates seen in recent years, there is a growing need for delivery systems that allow patients to receive consistent, effective and safe doses of medication with minimal inhalation effort," says Dr. Anthony D'Urzo, a family physician and director of the Primary Care Asthma Clinic in Toronto. "QVAR™ certainly meets these criteria."

Dr. D'Urzo notes that studies have shown a ten-fold greater lung deposition (the amount that actually gets into the lungs) with CFC-free QVAR™ compared with conventional CFC-BDP inhalers. As a result, with QVAR™, more BDP is available to the lungs to exert a therapeutic effect while less BDP is absorbed via the stomach. Conversely, Dr. D'Urzo adds, when a patient uses a CFC inhaler, over 90 percent of the BDP dose is deposited in the mouth and throat.

There are two basic types of therapies in asthma treatment: controllers, such as QVAR™, help control inflammation and prevent bronchospasm, while relievers lessen bronchospasm when it occurs.

QVAR™ is available only by prescription and is a trademark of 3M™