Albuterol is a 50:50 mixture of R-albuterol, the active enantiomer, and S-albuterol, which appears to be inactive in humans. The Food and Drug Administration recently approved levalbuterol, the pure R-isomer, as a preservative-free nebulizer solution. Published studies indicate that it is neither safer nor more effective than an equimolar dose of racemic albuterol (levalbuterol 1.25 mg = albute...

The bronchodilator effect of nebulized AMN, albuterol and their combination was evaluated in 16 steroid-dependent asthmatic children. In phase 1, maximal bronchodilation was determined by dose-response studies on separate days. Maximal bronchodilator dose of each drug was administered either alone or in combination during phase 2. In phase 1, 0.11 +/- 0.01 mg/kg of albuterol and 0.03 mg/kg of A...

Racemic albuterol is an equimolar mixture of two isomers, (R) and (S). Whether (R) and (S) isomers and the combination of both exert different effects in immune activation is not well defined. We analyzed the effects of (R+S)-albuterol, (R)-albuterol and (S)-albuterol in a murine model of allergic pulmonary inflammation and in activated T cells. Mice (C57BL/6) sensitized and aerosol challenged ...

Racemic albuterol has been one of the most widely used beta2-adrenoceptor agonists for the relief of the symptoms of asthma, yet the use of beta2 agonists has been known to induce bronchial hyperresponsiveness. To probe a possible role of the S-enantiomer for hyperresponsiveness, we determined the effects of (S)-albuterol on intracellular Ca2+ concentration ([Ca2+]i) in dissociated bovine trach...

INTRODUCTION Inhaled short-acting bronchodilators are recommended for the quick relief of bronchospasm symptoms in children including those less than five years of age. However, limited safety data is available in this young population. METHODS Safety data were analyzed from a randomized, double-blind, parallel group, placebo-controlled multicenter, study evaluating albuterol HFA 90microg or ...

beta(2)-Adrenergic agonists stimulate ciliary beat frequency (CBF), an integral part of mucociliary clearance. To evaluate the differential effects of albuterol enantiomers and their racemic mixture on ciliary function, CBF and intracellular calcium were measured at room temperature from single ovine airway epithelial cells with use of digital videomicroscopy. Baseline CBF was 7.2 +/- 0.2 (SE) ...

BACKGROUND Acute asthma is often treated with racemic albuterol, a 1:1 mixture of (R)-albuterol and (S)-albuterol. Levalbuterol is the single-isomer agent comprised (R)-albuterol, an active bronchodilator, without any effects of (S)-albuterol. OBJECTIVE To compare emergency department (ED) admission rates of patients presenting with acute asthma who were treated with either racemic albuterol ...

STUDY OBJECTIVE To compare the safety and efficacy of metered-dose inhaler (MDI) albuterol to nebulized (NEB) albuterol administration. DESIGN A randomized, triple-blinded, crossover study. SETTING A pediatric ICU in a tertiary care children's hospital. PATIENTS Eleven intubated infants with bronchiolitis. INTERVENTIONS Subjects received four puffs of MDI albuterol (360 microg) and 3 mL...

Twenty asthmatic patients clinically free of heart disease were studied for the possible arrhythmogenic action of albuterol (salbutamol). Two puffs of either albuterol or placebo were inhaled four times per day on two consecutive days and continuous ECG recordings obtained during each 24-hour period. Sixteen patients had atrial extrasystoles, four with albuterol, one with placebo, and 11 with b...

BACKGROUND Inhaled short acting β2-agonists (SABA), e.g. albuterol, are used for quick reversal of bronchoconstriction in asthmatics. While SABA are not recommended for maintenance therapy, it is not uncommon to find patients who frequently use SABA over a long period of time and there is a suspicion that long term exposure to SABA could be detrimental to lung function. To test this hypothesis ...