▼Umeclidinium: another LAMA for COPD.

Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) affects around 64 million people worldwide and is the fourth leading cause of death.(1) It is thought that 3 million people have COPD in the UK, with about 900,000 having been diagnosed and an estimated 2.1 million with disease that remains undiagnosed.(2) In addition, premature mortality from COPD in the UK is almost double the European average and as a result there has been considerable focus on improving outcomes for patients.(3)One of the options for maintenance pharmacological treatment of COPD is a long-acting muscarinic antagonist (LAMA).(4) DTB has previously reviewed three inhaled LAMAs licensed in the UK for use by people with COPD: tiotropium and ▼glycopyrronium (both administered once daily), and ▼aclidinium bromide (administered twice daily).(5-8) ▼Umeclidinium bromide (Incruse) is another once daily LAMA, delivered using the Ellipta inhaler device, and is indicated as maintenance bronchodilator treatment to relieve symptoms in adult patients with COPD.(9) Here we review the evidence for its use in the management of COPD.