Differential pharmacology and clinical utility of emerging combination treatments in the management of COPD – role of umeclidinium/vilanterol

Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) is a preventable and treatable disease characterized by airflow limitation that is not fully reversible. Bronchodilator therapy is the cornerstone in COPD treatment. Bronchodilation in COPD is mainly achieved via administration of long- and ultralong-acting β(2)-agonists and with long-acting muscarinic antagonists. New combinations of bronchodilators with dual-acting muscarinic antagonist and β(2)-agonist properties have been licensed, and others are currently being developed with the aim of achieving once-daily dosing, and therefore may improve the likelihood of treatment compliance. These combination bronchodilators include glycopyrronium bromide/indacaterol maleate, umeclidinium (UMEC) bromide/vilanterol trifenatate (VI), aclidinium bromide/formoterol and tiotropium bromide/olodaterol (Boehringer Ingelheim, Germany). This review will focus mainly on studies and clinical trials involving the novel fixed-dose combination of UMEC/VI at doses of 125/25 μg and 62.5/25 μg in patients with COPD. Data from large clinical trials involving more than 4,500 COPD patients indicate that UMEC/VI is an effective once-daily treatment in COPD with improved pulmonary function. Future studies assessing the impact of this combination on exacerbations, delay in disease progression, and health status in patients with COPD are warranted.