Management of Asthma with Montelukast

Respiratory tract disorder is a very common problem faced by pediatric population, asthma being one of the most common chronic disorders in young children. Many preschool children regularly wheeze, especially during common cold infection and cold seasons. Some children wheeze after a simple exercise or some after the introduction of medication like aspirin or after introduction to allergens. An anti-inflammatory therapy, consisting mainly of inhaled corticosteroids (ICs) has been the main treatment of asthma since the beginning and it still remains the first line therapy in asthma management. Since Leukotriene (LTs) are chemical mediators of airway inflammation in asthma, Leukotriene receptor antagonist (LTRAs) can be a potent anti-inflammatory drugs in the long term treatment of asthma. There are different LRTA medicines, but mainly Montelukast can be used in pediatric population, that can decrease the airway inflammation and provide bronchoprotection. The safety profile, oral administration as single daily dose and better compliance is the highlight of this drug. In this review, we describe the advances on the use of montelukast in the treatment of asthma.