Clinical relevance of bronchial mucosa “inflammometry” in severe OCS-dependent refractory asthma

Extract In severe asthma patients who fail to achieve disease control despite adequate and compliant use of high-doses of inhaled corticosteroids, short- or long-term period of oral corticosteroids (OCS) is required to induce beneficial clinical effects [1]. This subset of patients is characterized by a phenotype of severe steroid-resistant asthma defined as “OCS-dependent”, requiring OCS for at least three consecutive months/year [2]. Despite the well-known advantages associated with OCS use, severe OCS-dependent asthmatics have an increased risk of mortality caused by the higher exacerbation rates in conjunction with severe comorbidities [3–5].