Session Speaker

Indacaterol, A Novel Inhaled, Once-Daily, Long-Acting Beta2-Agonist for the Treatment of Obstructive Airways Diseases
Jorge Roig


Indacaterol is a novel once-daily, long-acting beta2-agonist developed for the treatment of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) and asthma. The present review summarizes the clinical data of indacaterol, including recent data from phase III trials. These clinical studies suggest that indacaterol produces rapid and sustained bronchodilation in patients with COPD, and asthma of different severities. Until now, clinical studies of up to 1-year’s duration have been at least partially published, which have confirmed the suitability of indacaterol for once-daily dosing, along with a favorable overall safety and tolerability profile in the long-term treatment of COPD. Therefore, it appears that indacaterol monotherapy will have its therapeutic potential primarily in COPD, where anti-inflammatory treatment is not fully established and issues about a potential risk of long-acting beta2-agonist use causing increased mortality have not been raised. As data from more advanced clinical trials have been published, a more complete picture of the full therapeutic potential of indacaterol in COPD has emerged, including patient-reported outcomes (eg, symptoms and quality of life) or additional pivotal outcomes (eg, exacerbation rates, disease progression, exercise capacity, and the development of hyperinflation). Finally, the pharmacological profile of indacaterol makes it an attractive partnering agent for future fixed combination therapies in both asthma and COPD, eg, with once-daily inhaled corticosteroids or long-acting antimuscarinergic bronchodilators. The outlook and potential of indacaterol are further discussed.