Antibiotic’s results mixed for asthma

An antibiotic made by French drug maker Sanofi-Aventis may reduce some symptoms when asthma worsens but it does not improve breathing capacity, according to a study financed by the drug company.

The study, published in last week’s New England Journal of Medicine, found that 278 adults who took the antibiotic telithromycin -- sold by Sanofi-Aventis under the name Ketek -- for 10 days after their attacks showed a drop in asthma symptoms.

But in using another gauge of success -- how much air patients could exhale -- the antibiotic showed no benefit.

“None of the pulmonary-function tests showed a significant treatment effect by the sixth week of the study,” the researchers concluded. Those taking the drug were also more likely to experience nausea.

Ketek has come under scrutiny because it may, in rare cases, cause liver poisoning. The drug, approved by the Food and Drug Administration in 2004, has been prescribed about 2.7 million times.