Bronchodilating drugs and airway reactivity.

Tests with various bronchodilator drugs are utilized in the screening of airway hyperactivity in clinical practice. Bronchodilator tests making use of Salbutamol (Ventoline) as aerosols and by mouth, SCH 1000 as inhalations, Thiazinamium (Multergan) by mouth were performed in 42 patients suffering from bronchial asthma or of chronic obstructive disease, who were investigated by measurement of FEV1, Raw, MEFR. The treatment tests have a variable but significant potency in bronchospastic diseases. Taking into consideration one, two or three signs of bronchodilation, the improvement of FEV1, of MEFR, of airway resistance, the decreasing efficacy of the drug is as follows: SCH 1000 aerosol, Salbutamol aerosol, Salbutamol per os, Thiazinamium per os. The measurement of Raw is the more sensitive exploration to detect the bronchodilator effect of these drugs. The observed bronchodilation may be considered as a criterion of hyperreactivity of the bronchial airways. The differences between the effectiveness of the drugs may allow a better knowledge of the mechanisms of the bronchial airway reactivity and of the treatment of bronchospastic diseases.