Some children suffering from asthma may be genetically less responsive to inhaled corticosteroids, as per a recent study.

Gregory Sawicki, M.D. of Children’s Hospital in Boston remarked that there can be varying reasons for this finding and noted that a similar thought was expressed by many studies involving adult asthma patients as even rigorous use of inhaled steroids does not lead to well controlled asthma in all adults.

From News-Medical.Net:

Of the 914 children in the study, inhaled steroids were recommended for 435 who had persistent asthma, meaning they had symptoms on a regular basis. Among children who weren’t recommended for inhaled steroid treatment, most reported well-controlled asthma. Among those recommended for inhaled steroid treatment, 44% reported consistently using the medicine; 35% said they intermittently used the medicine and 21% said they didn’t use it at all.

“The majority of children with mild asthma are less likely to have symptoms as they get older and may not need to be on daily steroids,” Dr. Sawicki said. “The flip side is that if a child has poor asthma control, the parents and doctor need to make sure the child is adhering to their inhaled steroid treatment. But variation in response to inhaled steroids, as other medications, is well described.”

The data was provided by the Child Asthma Management Program Continuation Study (CAMPCS), one of the largest groups of children with mild to moderate asthma in the nation who have been followed over 10 years.