Overcoming Steroid Insensitivity In Respiratory Disease

Written by well-known experts in field, Overcoming Steroid Insensitivity in Respiratory Disease is the first book dedicated to dealing with the single most challenging management issue in long-term steroid therapy. Since their discovery in the 1950's, the therapeutic use of corticosteroids has been the mainstay of treatment for many chronic inflammatory diseases. Their utility has been tempered, however, by the increasing risk of side effects with higher dose therapy. In the treatment of airways diseases, side-effects can be limited by targeted delivery to the airway and lung, and significant progress has been made through the use of increasingly selective molecules, and through a variety of lung targeting strategies. Moreover, the recent developments in our understanding of the molecular and structural mechanisms of action of corticosteroid actions have suggested that it may be possible to develop new corticosteroids with intrinsically different pharmacology. A combination of these developments will enable the design of agents with an enhanced therapeutic index and this book, aimed at specialists in pulmonology, provides the clinician who prescribes corticosteroid therapies with the most up-to-date information on one of the most significant therapeutic challenges to effective management of chronic inflammatory diseases. First book dedicated specifically to this major management issue for respiratory and general physicians. Authors well-known experts in field. Reviews important new advances in therapeutics. Written by well-known experts in field, this is the first book dedicated to dealing with the single most challenging management issue in long-term steroid therapy. Overcoming Steroid Insensitivity in Respiratory Disease reviews important new advances in therapeutics and provides the clinician with the most up to date information on one of the most significant therapeutic challenges to effective management of these diseases. This unique book is an invaluable resource for all postgraduate students and specialist physicians in pulmonology allergy and asthma. It is also of interest for workers in biomedical and pharmaceutical research.