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Abstract
Objective
The objective of this study was to examine the impact of long-term medium to high-dose inhaled budesonide on bone mineral density in children with asthma.
Methods
We conducted a cross-sectional study in children aged 7–17 years with asthma, who received long-term (≥2 years), medium to high-dose inhaled budesonide (≥400μg/day in 6–11 years old; ≥800 μg/day in >11 years old). We measured bone mineral density (BMD) using dual-energy X-ray absorptiometry and compared it with reference Indian normative values.
Results
Thirty-five children with moderate to severe asthma receiving long-term medium to high-dose inhaled budesonide, were included in the study. We found a significantly low lumbar-spine BMD in the study population compared to reference Indian values (p-value 0.002). Eight cases had short stature. Despite the adjustment for height-age in these short-stature cases, lumbar-spine BMD remained significantly low in the study population (p-value 0.020). No significant difference was found in 25-hydroxy vitamin D levels between subjects with “low BMD” and “BMD z-score > –2”.
Conclusions
The findings of this study suggest that long-term medium to high-dose inhaled budesonide treatment in children with asthma is associated with decreased BMD. However, further investigation with a larger sample size is necessary to confirm this relationship.
Declaration of interest
The authors report no conflicts of interest.