Investing.com -- AstraZeneca (NASDAQ: AZN ) has announced significant results from its BATURA Phase III trial. The trial has shown that Airsupra, AstraZeneca’s anti-inflammatory reliever rescue therapy, has demonstrated substantial improvements in treating patients with mild asthma. The results of the trial have been published in the New England Journal of Medicine and were presented at the American Thoracic Society (ATS) 2025 International Conference in San Francisco, CA.

The BATURA trial compared the use of Airsupra to albuterol, a commonly used rescue medicine in the US. The trial showed that treatment with Airsupra significantly reduced the risk of severe exacerbations by 47% compared to albuterol alone. The success of Airsupra led to an early stop of the BATURA trial, as recommended by the Independent Data Monitoring Committee.

The BATURA trial builds upon the previous Phase III MANDALA and DENALI trials, showing the benefit of Airsupra in reducing the risk of severe exacerbations across all asthma severities compared to albuterol alone. The trial’s results align with the latest global recommendations from the Global Initiative for Asthma, which recommends an anti-inflammatory reliever combination therapy as the preferred reliever therapy in mild asthma.

Mild asthma, which affects between 50% to 70% of patients, is often assumed to be low-risk. However, it can result in severe or even fatal exacerbations. Up to 30% of all reported asthma-related exacerbations and deaths are represented by people with mild or infrequent asthma symptoms.

Craig LaForce, MD, Medical Director of North Carolina Clinical Research, said that the BATURA trial results could change clinical practice in asthma that has been in place for 50 years. The trial’s results add to the evidence supporting the value of the anti-inflammatory reliever rescue approach. This approach provides immediate relief from symptoms and reduces inflammation to prevent future severe exacerbations for patients living with asthma.

Tonya Winders, President of Global Allergy and Airways Patient Platform (GAAPP), added that using an anti-inflammatory reliever therapy can transform every use of a rescue inhaler into an early intervention opportunity to address the underlying inflammation of asthma.

Sharon Barr, Executive Vice-President and Head of BioPharmaceuticals R&D, AstraZeneca, stated that the results from the BATURA trial, along with findings from MANDALA and DENALI, demonstrate the superiority of Airsupra over albuterol alone across all asthma severities.

In a key secondary endpoint, adults and adolescents aged 12 and older receiving Airsupra had 63% lower exposure to total systemic corticosteroids (SCS) over the treatment period compared with albuterol-alone. This reduction reduces known risks from cumulative exposure to SCS. Similar reductions were seen in a prespecified subgroup of adult patients (≥18 years) on treatment.

Airsupra is the first and only anti-inflammatory rescue medication approved in the US for the as-needed treatment or prevention of bronchoconstriction and to reduce the risk of exacerbations in people with asthma aged 18 years and older. It is also being studied in adolescents with asthma (12 to <18 years old) in the ACADIA Phase III trial and in patients in China in the BAIYUN Phase III trial. Outside of the US, Airsupra is approved in the United Arab Emirates, Kuwait, Bahrain, Qatar, and Oman.

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