Study	Reason for exclusion
Akpinarli 1999	100% on ICS at baseline
Arvidsson 1989	No placebo group
Arvidsson 1991	No placebo group
Aziz 1999	Treatment period < 4 weeks
Aziz 1998	Treatment period < 4 weeks
Aziz 1998a	Treatment period < 4 weeks
Baki 1998	Treatment period < 4 weeks
Baumgarten 2002	Not RCT, No placebo group
Beach 1993	No placebo group
Becker 1989	Treatment period < 4 weeks
Becker 1993	No placebo group
Bhagat 1995	Treatment period < 4 weeks
Bishop 1994	Treatment period < 4 weeks
Blake 1992	Treatment period < 4 weeks
Boner 1992	No placebo group
Booth 1996	100% on ICS at baseline
Boulet Laviol 1997	No placebo group
Boulet 1998a	ICS in all treatment groups
Boulet 2001	Treatment period < 4 weeks
Bowers 1997	Review
Boyd 1995	100% on ICS at baseline
Brambilla 1994	No placebo group
Brambilla 2003	No placebo group
Britton 1992	No placebo group
Byrnes 1996	No placebo group
Byrnes 2000	No placebo group
Campbell 1999	No placebo group
Campbell 2000	No placebo group
Carlsen 1995	Treatment period < 4 weeks
Castle 1993	No placebo group
Charpin 1992	No placebo group
Chuchalin 2002	Combination therapy versus placebo
Clark 1993	Not RCT‐ case reports
Clauzel 1998	No placebo group
Cockcroft 1997	Treatment period < 4 weeks
Cox 1996	No placebo group
D'Urzo 2001	100% on ICS at baseline
D5125C00344	100% on ICS at baseline
De Carli 1995	No placebo group
De Oliveira 1998	No placebo group
Derom 1992	Treatment period < 4 weeks
Di Lorenzo 1995	No placebo group
Droszcz 1999	No placebo group, subjects COPD and Asthma
Faurschou 1992	No placebo group
Faurschou 1994a	Treatment period < 4 weeks
Faurschou 1996	No placebo group
Faurschou 1997	Abstract only, full details not available
FitzGerald 1999	100% on ICS at baseline
Fitzpatrick 1990	Treatment period < 4 weeks
Fuglsang 1998	Treatment period < 4 weeks
Fuller 1993	No placebo group
Gardiner 1994	100% on ICS at baseline
Giannini 1995	Treatment period < 4 weeks
Giannini 1999	Treatment period < 4 weeks
Gong 1996	Treatment period < 4 weeks
Goodwin 1996	No placebo group
Green 1002	Treatment period < 4 weeks
Greening 1994	No placebo group
Grove 1995	100% on ICS at baseline
Grove 1996	Treatment period < 4 weeks
Hacki 1993	No placebo group
Hekking 1990	No placebo group
Hermansson 1995	No placebo group
Jartti 1998	100% on ICS at baseline
Jenkins 1991	letter‐ not RCT
Kalra 1996	Treatment period < 4 weeks
Kavuru 2000b	Combination therapy versus ICS
Kemp 1993	Treatment period < 4 weeks
Kemp 1994	Treatment period < 4 weeks
Kemp 1998b	100% on ICS at baseline
Kesten 1991	No placebo group
Kesten 1992	No placebo group
Kozlik‐Feldmann 1996	No placebo group
Lai 1995	No placebo group
Langley 1998	100% on ICS at baseline
Langton Hewer 1995	100% on ICS at baseline
Lenney 1995	No placebo group
Li 1999	100% on ICS at baseline
Lipworth 1998	100% on ICS at baseline
Lipworth 1999	Treatment period < 4 weeks
Lipworth 2000a	100% on ICS at baseline
Lipworth 2000b	Treatment period < 4 weeks
Lotvall 1992	No placebo group
Lundback 1993	No placebo group
Malo 1992	Cohort study‐ not RCT
Mann 1996	No placebo group
Martin 1999	No placebo group
McIvor 1998	100% on ICS at baseline
Meijer 1995	100% on ICS at baseline
Midgren 1992	No placebo group
Molimard 2001	No placebo group
Nelson 1999a	100% on ICS at baseline
Newnham 1993	Treatment period < 4 weeks
Nichol 1990	Treatment period < 4 weeks
Nielsen 1999	100% on ICS at baseline
Nightingale 2002	100% on ICS at baseline
Nix 1990	Treatment period < 4 weeks
Norhaya 1999	100% on ICS at baseline
Nowak 1992	Treatment period < 4 weeks
O'Byrne 2001	Combination therapy versus ICS
Palmer 1992	No placebo group
Pauwels 1997	100% on ICS at baseline
Pearlman 1999	Combination therapy versus ICS.
Pederson 1993	Treatment period < 4 weeks
Price 2002	100% on ICS at baseline
Quebe‐Fehling 1996	Treatment period < 4 weeks
Rabe 1993	Treatment period < 4 weeks
Ramsdale 1991	Treatment period < 4 weeks
Rhee 1997	No placebo group
Ringbaek 1996	No placebo group
Rosenhall 1990	No placebo group
Russell 1995	100% on ICS at baseline
Ruttenvan Molken1995	No placebo group
Schaaning 1996	No placebo group
Scherner 2004	Treatment period < 4 weeks
Self 1998	100% on ICS at baseline
Shapiro 2000a	Combination therapy versus ICS
Shepherd 1991	Letter ‐ not RCT
Sichletidis 1993	No placebo group
Siergiejko 1998	No placebo group
Simons 1992	Treatment period < 4 weeks
Simons 1997b	100% on ICS at baseline
SLGA2016	Treatment administered as one‐offs at clinic visits
SLGB4011R	Treatment period < 4 weeks
SMO30003	Treatment administered as one‐offs at clinic visits
SMS30035	Treatment period < 4 weeks
Smyth 1993	Treatment period < 4 weeks
Sprogoe‐Jakobsen1992	No placebo group
Staehr 1995	No placebo group
Steffensen 1996	No placebo group
Tan 1997	100% on ICS at baseline
Tattersfield 2001	No placebo group, not regular use of LABA
Taylor 1992	No placebo group
Taylor Jensen 1997	Treatment period < 4 weeks
Thomson 1998	No placebo group
Totterman 1998	No placebo group
Turner 1998	Treatment period < 4 weeks
Twentyman 1990	Treatment period < 4 weeks
Ullman 1988	No placebo group
Van der Molen 1996	100% on ICS at baseline
van der Woude 2001	Treatment period < 4 weeks
Venables 1992	No placebo group
Verberne 1991	Abstract only‐ details not available
Verberne 1996	No placebo group
Verberne 1997	No placebo group
Verberne 1998	100% on ICS at baseline
Verberne 2000	Review‐ not RCT
Verini 1998	Treatment period < 4 weeks
Wallaert 1999	No placebo group
Walters 1992	Abstract only‐ details not available
Weinstein 1997	Treatment period < 4 weeks
Wenzel 1998	No placebo group
Wilding 1997	100% on ICS at baseline
Wolfe 1995	No placebo group
Wong 1997	Treatment period < 4 weeks
Woolcock 1996	No placebo group
Yates 1995	Treatment period < 4 weeks
Yates 1997	Treatment period < 4 weeks
Zellweger 1994	No placebo group, Treatment period < 4 weeks
Zimmerman 2004	100% on ICS at baseline