Early intervention with two asthma drugs may offer protection from pneumonia in patients infected with influenza, according to a new study published in PLOS Pathogens.
Influenza pneumonia occurs when a flu infection spreads to alveolar air sacs in the lungs. Typically the virus does not stretch this deep into the respiratory tract, but when it does the condition can be lethal.
By examining mice infected with influenza A in the laboratory setting, researchers determined the onset of influenza pneumonia was caused by the failure of immune cells called alveolar macrophages. Further investigation revealed the early administration of Accolate and Singulair — medications used to treat asthma and allergies — hindered the development of influenza pneumonia.
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"This was a totally unexpected observation," said Thomas Braciale, MD, PhD, one of the study's authors and a professor of pathology and microbiology at the University of Virginia in Charlottesville. "When I told multiple colleagues who are infectious disease or pulmonary physicians, they were absolutely flabbergasted."
Dr. Braciale and the research team are now working with colleagues to determine whether patients treated with the two drugs are less likely to develop influenza pneumonia.
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