Inhaled steroid resistance is an obstacle to asthma control in asthmatic smokers. The reasons of this phenomenon are not yet entirely understood. Interaction of drug particles with environmental tobacco smoke (ETS) could change the aerodynamic profile of the drug through the particle coagulation phenomenon. Aim of the present study was to examine whether steroid particles interact with smoke when delivered in the presence of ETS.
Environmental Tobacco Smoke Research Laboratory, Tobacco Control Unit, Fondazione IRCCS Istituto Nazionale dei Tumori/SIMG Italian College GPs, Milan, Italy. ginverni@clavis.it