Clinical and experimental allergy : journal of the British Society for Allergy and Clinical Immunology
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Randomized Controlled Trial Clinical Trial
Effect of a 4-week treatment with theophylline on sputum eosinophilia and sputum eosinophil chemotactic activity in steroid-naive asthmatics.
The precise mechanism of action of theophylline in asthma is not fully understood but recent data have drawn attention to its potential anti-inflammatory effect. ⋯ Theophylline decreases the natural sputum eosinophil chemotactic activity present in asthmatics. However, when using a small sample size, the 35% reduction in sputum eosinophilia achieved by theophylline failed to reach statistical significance when compared to that seen after placebo.