Inhaled budesonide, a drug commonly used to treat asthma, reduced the risk of urgent care or hospitalization for COVID-19 patients by 90 percent, according to a recent University of Oxford study.
Researchers analyzed data from a 28-day clinical study of 146 patients, half of which took inhaled budesonide — sold as AstraZeneca's Pulmicort — twice a day.
The drug cut the risk of urgent care or hospitalization by 90 percent within the study period and was also tied to a "quicker resolution of fever, symptoms, and fewer persistent symptoms."
The study findings were published Feb. 4 on the medRxiv preprint server. The study has yet to be peer reviewed.