Table 2.

Prospective, randomized, placebo-controlled trials of statins in asthma.

	Design	N	Patients	Duration	Effect of statin therapy
Braganza et al. [158]	Double-blind: Atorvastatin 40mg/d vs. placebo (4 wks); then ICS added to both groups (4 wks)	71	Smokers with mild-to-moderate asthma	8 weeks	No improvement in morning PEF.
					Improvement in asthma AQLQ score (0.52, 95% CI, 0.17-0.87; p=0.005).
					No change in induced sputum cells
Maneechotesuwan et al. [159]	Double-blind: Simvastatin 10mg/d	50	Mild asthmatics on low-dose ICS	10 weeks (8 wk treatment)	Significant reduction in sputum eosinophil percentage
Menzies et al. [160]	Cross-over trial: Simvastatin vs. placebo after d/c of anti-inflammatory medications	16	Mild-to-moderate asthma on ICS	1 month	No significant change in exhaled NO, AHR, or eosinophilia
Moini et al. [161]	Atorvastatin 80 mg/d	62	Mild-to-moderate asthma	8 weeks	No significant difference in ACT score, spirometry, or blood eosinophil count
Hothersall et al. [162]	Double-blind crossover trial: Atorvastatin 80 mg/d	54	Atopic asthmatics on ICS	24 weeks (2 × 8 wk treatments)	No significant difference in mean morning PEF, spirometry, or AQLQ score. Significant reduction in sputum macrophages and leukotriene B4.
Cowan et al. [163]	Crossover trial: Simvastatin 40 mg/d, simultaneous ICS reduction until loss of control, then ICS increase until control	43	Asthmatics on ICS	≥3 months treatment	No significant difference in minimal ICS dose required for control.
					In patients who stopped ICS, ACQ was lower (p=0.037), FEV1 higher (p<0.01), and sputum eosinophils lower (p=0.033) on simvastatin.

Abbreviations: ACQ, asthma control questionnaire; ACT, asthma control test; AHR, airway hyperresponsiveness; AQLQ, asthma quality of life questionnaire; BD, bronchodilator; CI, confidence interval; d/c, discontinuation; ER, emergency room; FEV1, forced expiratory volume in 1 second; ICS, inhaled corticosteroid; NO, nitric oxide; OR, odds ratio; PEF, peak expiratory flow.