For the first time, a drug therapy has been shown to slow the rate of lung function loss in patients with moderate to severe chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD). Treatment with salmeterol (a long-acting inhaled beta₂-agonist) and fluticasone propionate (an inhaled corticosteroid), either alone or together, significantly slowed the rate of decline in a large, randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled trial spanning 42 countries.

The study, called TORCH (Towards a Revolution in COPD Health), involved more than 6,000 patients with moderate to severe COPD. The patients received salmeterol, fluticasone propionate, the two in combination, or a placebo. Researchers measured forced expiratory volume in 1 second (FEV₁) at baseline and every 24 weeks after the start of therapy to determine the rate of decline in FEV₁.

The rate of FEV₁ decline was slowest in patients taking both drugs and fastest in those taking a placebo. The effect of treatment on FEV₁ decline was similar regardless of smoking status, sex, age, baseline FEV₁, ethnicity, body mass index, or previous exacerbations, researchers report. Until now, smoking cessation was the only treatment shown to slow the rate of decline in FEV₁.

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