According to a new study, antifungal drug could benefit the people who are with severe asthma and also allergic to some fungi. Dr. David W. Denning at University Hospital of South Manchester and his colleagues reported that antifungal drugs showed significant improvement for patients with severe asthma with fungal sensitization.

Dr. David said: "We knew that many people with severe asthma are sensitized to several airborne fungi which can worsen asthma without overt clinical signs. The question was: does antifungal therapy provide any clinical benefit."

For the clinical trial, 18 patients were assigned to receive an oral dose of itraconazole and 23 were assigned to an inactive placebo pill. After 8 months, the asthma-related quality-of-life questionnaire showed that 62% of the patients from itraconazole group experienced significant improvement than the placebo group.

11 patients, who received the drug but left the treatment before completion, faced some side- effects such as breathlessness, nausea and muscle weakness. So, the investigators advised that "continuing antifungal therapy beyond 8 months is important for maintaining quality of life in these patients."

Dr. Denning further added: "This study indicates that fungal allergy is important in some patients with severe asthma, and that oral antifungal therapy is worth trying in difficult-to-treat patients. Clearly itraconazole will not suit everyone and is not always helpful, but when it is the effect is dramatic."

Findings have been published in American Journal of Respiratory and Critical Care Medicine.