The new report entitled Treatment Algorithms in Asthma shows a reductionin Advair use in first-, second- and third-lines of therapy to 12.2 percent,13.6 percent, and 14.6 percent, respectively when compared to the 2007analysis that showed Advair was prescribed in 13.9 percent, 19.3 percent and16.5 percent of first-, second- and third-line patients, respectively.

The decline in Advair's patient share is due to several factors:physicians' (particularly primary care physicians [PCPs]) increasing use ofMerck's Singulair first-line, pushing Advair to later lines of therapy;specialists favoring newer once-daily inhaled corticosteroids (ICSs) with morefavorable side-effect profiles in patients with less-severe disease prior toprogressing to a long-acting beta2 agonist (LABA)/ICS combination; andphysician movement towards using AstraZeneca's newly launched Symbicort as analternative to Advair in later lines of therapy.

The report also finds that surveyed physicians will continue to useSingulair first-line regardless of March 2008 media reports linking the drugto behavior/mood changes and suicidality (suicidal thinking and behavior).

"The majority of pulmonologists, allergists and PCPs we surveyed told usthat these media reports have had no effect on their treatment practice,"added Dr. Westphal. "However, more surveyed allergists and PCPs told us thatin the next two years they are likely to monitor their Singulair patients withincreased vigilance, which likely reflects their treatment of a higherpercentage of patients under the age of 18 compared with surveyedpulmonologists."

About Treatment Algorithm Insight Series

Decision Resources combines in-depth primary research with the mostextensive claims-based longitudinal patient-level data from PharMetrics(R) toprovide exceptional insight into physicians' prescribing trends and thefactors that drive therapy product choice, from diagnosis through multiplecourses of treatment, for a specific disease.

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Natalia Morales Elizabeth Marshall Decision Resources Decision Resources, Inc. 781-296-2691 781-296-2563 nmorales@dresources.com emarshall@dresources.comSOURCE Decision Resources