Combination Oladaterol and Tiotropium enters Phase III for COPD

Boehringer Ingelheim has initiated its Phase III trial that will investigate Spiriva (tiotropium) in combination with a new compound, olodaterol, a novel once-daily long-acting beta-2 agonist ,for the treatment of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease. Spiriva (tiotropium), a long-acting muscarinic antagonist (LAMA) co-marketed with Pfizer, is the most prescribed COPD drug worldwide, while olodaterol is a novel once-daily long-acting beta-2 agonist (LABA) which Boehringer says has been developed as "an ideal partner" to its big-selling drug. The German company said it is putting the combo into late-stage studies on the back on promising olodaterol Phase III results, which will be published in the near future.