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Clinical Trial
. 1991 Oct;20(10):1090-3.
doi: 10.1016/s0196-0644(05)81381-2.

A randomized, controlled comparison of isoetharine and albuterol in the treatment of acute asthma

C L Emerman  1 , R K Cydulka, D Effron, T W Lukens, H Gershman, S P Boehm
Affiliations
Clinical Trial

A randomized, controlled comparison of isoetharine and albuterol in the treatment of acute asthma

C L Emerman et al. Ann Emerg Med. 1991 Oct.

Abstract

Study objective: To determine whether treatment of acute asthma with repeated doses of nebulized albuterol leads to greater bronchodilation and lower hospital admission rate than treatment with nebulized isoetharine.

Design: Randomized, double-blinded, controlled trial of albuterol and isoetharine.

Type of participants: Patients between 18 and 50 years old presenting with acute asthma. Patients were excluded if they had a history of sensitivity to the study drugs, had congestive heart failure or chronic-obstructive pulmonary disease, or were unable to perform spirometry. One hundred three patients were entered into the study.

Interventions: All patients received oxygen and methylprednisolone in addition to administration of either isoetharine or albuterol. The nebulized aerosol was given at hourly intervals for a total of three doses.

Measurements and main results: Spirometry was performed before treatment and again at 90 and 180 minutes. Initial forced expiratory volume at one minute (FEV1) was 38.1% of predicted normal for the albuterol group and 36.0% of predicted normal for the isoetharine group. At 180 minutes, FEV1 was 55.6% of predicted normal for the albuterol group and 57.1% of predicted for the isoetharine group (NS). Twenty-eight percent of the albuterol group required admission compared with 26% of the isoetharine group (NS). There was no difference in occurrence of side effects between the two groups.

Conclusion: Repeated doses of albuterol do not lead to a greater improvement in pulmonary function or a lower hospital admission rate than treatment with isoetharine.

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