Figure 3.

Time to the first severe asthma exacerbation. All patients used similar doses of budesonide-formoterol, as maintenance therapy. The as-needed medication was budesonide-formoterol (Symbicort SMART), formoterol or terbutaline. The risk of having a severe exacerbation was reduced by 27% with Symbicort SMART compared with formoterol and by 45% compared with terbutaline as as-needed medication. Copyright © 2006. Reproduced with permission from Rabe KF, Atienza T, Magyar P, et al. 2006. Effect of budesonide in combination with formoterol for reliever therapy in asthma exacerbations: a randomised controlled, double-blind study. Lancet, 368:744–53.

Abbreviations: BUD/FORM, budesonide-formoterol; FORM, formoterol;TERB, terbutaline.