Efficacy, safety and hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal axis function in patients with asthma treated with cloprednol.

Cloprednol was tested in 25 patients with chronic reversible bronchial obstruction, with respect to changes in hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal (HPA) axis function and its efficacy on their clinical asthma. Patients were treated by a single morning dose for a 6-month period. The HPA axis function as estimated by fasting plasma cortisol levels did not show any significant changes, but adrenal response, assessed by ACTH stimulation test, was found slightly less at 6 months than at 3 months and at baseline. Pulmonary function tests--FEV1 and Raw--showed some improvement during the trial period. The score of respiratory complaints and symptoms, as well as the subjective status of the patients, showed a trend towards improvement. No significant side effects were observed.