Inhaled corticosteroids may carry less risk of BMD reduction in postmenopausal women

Corticosteroid therapy is an effective treatment for asthma sufferers, but the use of systemic corticosteroids is known to increase the risk of osteoporotic fractures. A recent study published in the Journal of Allergy and Clinical Immunology suggests that moderate doses of inhaled corticosteroids (ICs) carry less risk than traditional oral corticosteroid (OC) therapy with respect to reduction of bone mineral density (BMD) in postmenopausal women. This assertion is based on the premise that the lowest daily dose of IC sufficient to control the patient's asthma is used.