Dose frequency in the treatment of asthmatics with inhaled topical steroid.

Twenty-nine patients treated with beclomethasone dipropionate (BDP) because of asthma were tapered off BDP stepwise at 3 weeks intervals in a single blind manner. Every day the patients recorded morning and evening peak expiratory flow, symptom scores for night and day and their consumption of medicine. Evening peak flow was the most sensitive variable to detect a deterioration in the asthmatic condition. In 7 patients no significant change in asthma symptoms occurred. The remaining 22 patients then participated in a randomized double-blind trial comparing their daily dose of BDP given as 4 divided doses or as 2 doses. No significant difference was found between these two regimens.