Objective: To compare therapeutic response between Montelukast versus Montelukast plus inhaled corticosteroid (Budesonide) in children having mild persistent asthma. Study Design: Randomized Controlled Trial. Setting: Department of Pediatrics Medicine, National Institute of Child Health, Karachi. Period: 1st April 2016 to 30th September 2016. Material & Methods: Children aged 2 years to 14 years having mild persistent asthma for more than 6 months were included. After treatment Good response was considered when, forced expiratory volume in first second (FEV1) became >7.5% from baseline. Group A was given montelukast as monotherapy once daily and Group B was given Montelukast along with inhaled corticosteroid (Budesonide. At 6 weeks followup change in FEV1 was recorded. Result: Mean age of the patients in montelukast alone (Group A) was 6.77+/-2.16 years while in montelukast with Inhaled Corticosteroid (Group B) was 6.97+/-2.17 years. Duration of disease in Group A was 18.32+/-6.12 months while in montelukast with ICS group was 18.50 +/-6.08 months. Baseline FEV1 in Group A was 81.83+/-0.85% while in Group B was 82.05 +/-0.63%. Males were higher with 131 (61.8%). Family history was positive in 82 (38.70%) patients. After 6 weeks mean FEV1 was 89.49 +/-0.87% in Group A while in Group B was 89.53+/-0.86%. Overall good responses were found in 21 (9.09%) patients. In Group A, good response was found in 5 (4.7%) patients while in Group B was in 16 (15.1%) with significant p-value. Conclusion: In our study montelukast along with inhaled steroids had better response than montelukast alone in mild persistent asthma.
Efficacy of oral montelukast in comparison of inhaled steroids for mild persistent asthma among children aged 1-5 years: A randomized clinical trial in Sri-Lanka