Once-daily long-acting β₂-agonists (LABAs) are an important treatment option, either alone or in combination with other inhaled long-acting bronchodilators in the management of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD).

To audit the effectiveness of indacaterol as maintenance therapy in patients with moderate-to-severe COPD (Global initiative for chronic Obstructive Lung Disease [GOLD] stage II/III).

This was a single-center audit of a primary care COPD cohort comprising all patients treated with indacaterol following treatment escalation (as per National Institute for Health and Care Excellence guidelines) or failure with other therapies. The sample was restricted to patients treated for a minimum of 12 months with indacaterol, for whom preswitching and follow-up spirometry as well as exacerbation frequency data were available (GOLD spirometry guidelines). Pulmonary function was assessed by spirometry (recorded as forced expiratory volume in 1 second [FEV₁] expressed as percentage predicted). Relevant self-reported qualitative information was recorded in descriptive terms for quality of life (QoL) assessment.

A total of 15 patients met the audit inclusion criteria (66.6% male, mean age 64.9±7.7 years). COPD disease duration ranged from 1 to 22 years; 93% had GOLD stage II or III COPD. Follow-up ranged in duration from 12 to 27 months. Indacaterol was associated with a significant reduction in exacerbation frequency compared with the 12 months prior to initiation (P=0.02). In those patients who experienced three or more exacerbations/year, mean exacerbation rate fell from 5.43±1.07 to 2.43±0.2 after 12 months treatment with indacaterol (P=0.02). A reduction in dyspnea was noted in 53% of patients. Similarly, improvements in exercise tolerance and well-being were self-reported in 67% and 93%, respectively.

Indacaterol was found to be an effective LABA as an escalation or switch medication in patients with moderate-to-severe COPD. Indacaterol was effective both as monotherapy and in combination with a long-acting muscarinic antagonist. Switching to indacaterol from a LABA/inhaled corticosteroid fixed-combination inhaler significantly reduced the number of acute exacerbations and also improved self-reported QoL.