Cochrane · systematic review · CD008418
Formoterol versus short‐acting beta‐agonists as relief medication for adults and children with asthma
Welsh, EJ, Cates, CJ · Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews · 2010 · Cochrane Library
AirwaysAMSTAR 2: not assessed
SoF tableOnly the outcomes this review put in its Summary of Findings table are listed (the Cochrane Handbook caps them at about seven per comparison). Its other analyses are not shown here.
Questions
6
current version
GRADE rated
6
No studies
0
Included studies
NR
No studies 0 · 0%Ungraded 0 · 0%Very low 0 · 0%Low 4 · 66.7%Moderate 2 · 33.3%High 0 · 0%
Ungraded means an effect was reported without a GRADE rating; it is not a gap. No studies means the review found nothing to answer the question. The six categories are a display order, not a score.
Questions and results
Formoterol versus short‐acting beta2‐agonist as relief medication for asthma
Population: Patients with asthma
| Outcome | Effect | Evidence | Status / GRADE |
|---|---|---|---|
Patients with an exacerbation requiring hospitalisation Formoterol vs short‐acting beta2‐agonist | OR 0.84 [0.67, 1.04] | 7 studies · 22236 participants | Moderate |
Patients with an exacerbation requiring a course of oral corticosteroids Formoterol vs short‐acting beta2‐agonist | OR 0.84 [0.77, 0.91] | 6 studies · 21591 participants | Moderate Downgraded: imprecision |
Fatal serious adverse events (all‐cause) Formoterol vs short‐acting beta2‐agonist | OR 1.08 [0.51, 2.3] | 5 studies · 21629 participants | Low Downgraded: imprecision |
Patients with a serious adverse event (all cause) Formoterol vs short‐acting beta2‐agonist | OR 0.94 [0.81, 1.08] | 7 studies · 22538 participants | Low Downgraded: imprecision |
Patients with a serious adverse event (asthma related) Formoterol vs short‐acting beta2‐agonist | OR 0.91 [0.72, 1.15] | 6 studies · 21986 participants | Low Downgraded: imprecision |
Withdrawals (any reason) Formoterol vs short‐acting beta2‐agonist | OR 1.12 [1.02, 1.24] | 7 studies · 22541 participants | Low Downgraded: imprecision, inconsistency |