US approves Boehringer`s once-a-day inhaler drug

Washington: The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has approved a new long-acting inhaler drug from Boehringer Ingelheim to treat people with chronic lung disease.

The agency approved Striverdi Respimat for chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, which causes bronchitis and emphysema. The disease, which is most often caused by smoking, is the third leading cause of death in the US, according to the National Institutes of Health.

The FDA approved the drug today based on a study in 3,104 patients which showed improvements in lung function versus placebo.

The drug will carry a bold warning that it is not approved to treat patients with asthma. Striverdi Respimate is part of a family of medications that have been linked to asthma-related deaths.