Asthma Care With Alvesco® (Ciclesonide) in Primary Care in Adults - The ACCEPT-study (BY9010/CA-102)

• Change in Patient Assessment of Asthma Control [ Time Frame: At baseline and at week 12 ] [ Designated as safety issue: No ]

  Patient assessment of asthma control was assessed at baseline and at week 12 using the question "How would you rate the control of your asthma symptoms?".

  The change in this assessment was categorized in "Improvement" and "Non-Improvement".

• Assessment of Patient Compliance During the Study [ Time Frame: 12 weeks ] [ Designated as safety issue: No ]
• Assessment of Patient Treatment Satisfaction [ Time Frame: 12 weeks ] [ Designated as safety issue: No ]

The purpose of this study is to investigate the effectiveness of Alvesco® (Ciclesonide) compared with usual asthma care in the primary care setting. Patients with a history of asthma for at least 6 months and who, in the opinion of the physician, meet the clinical requirements for treatment with inhaled steroids (ICS) will be enrolled. They will either receive Alvesco® or usual care.

• Drug: Ciclesonide
  Asthma Care with Alvesco
• Drug: Usual Care Inhaled Glucocorticosteroids
  Usual asthma care and dosage as chosen by the Primary Care Physician including inhaled steroid treatment

• Active Comparator: Alvesco
  Alvesco 320mcg / Alvesco 640mcg
  Intervention: Drug: Ciclesonide
• Active Comparator: Usual Care
  Intervention: Drug: Usual Care Inhaled Glucocorticosteroids

Main inclusion criteria:

• Written informed consent
• 18 years or older with diagnosis of asthma for at least 6 months
• Clinically stable asthma at the time of study enrollment
• Clinical requirements for treatment with ICS as outlined in the Canadian Asthma Consensus Guidelines
• If patients are currently on ICS, the dose must be stable for 3 months and they must be willing to switch

Main exclusion criteria:

• On combination therapy (ICS + long acting beta-2-agonist) for asthma in the past 3 months or require combination therapy
• Severe asthma, one or more asthma exacerbations in the last 3 months requiring hospitalization or emergency room visit, or patients who have used systemic steroids more than 3 times in the past 6 months or who are currently using systemic steroids
• Mild asthma requiring short acting beta-2-agonists only
• Patients with a contraindication to ICS therapy
• Any other disease or medical condition requiring further clinical evaluation, which in the opinion of the Primary Care Practitioner may interfere with the clinical study or interfere with the diagnosis of asthma.
• Pregnancy, breast feeding, intention to become pregnant during the course of the study or lack of safe contraception in pre-menopausal women