Summary
Prednisone has reached the approved stage (maximum clinical phase 4) for at least one indication, so its use in Asthma would be drug repurposing rather than first-in-human development. This does not mean it is approved for Asthma. ClinicalTrials.gov lists 8 registered trials linking Prednisone to Asthma: 1 is active or not yet recruiting; 4 have completed; 3 are terminated, withdrawn, suspended or of unknown status. The most advanced is Phase 4 (NCT01326494). It plans or enrolled 92 participants. Registration activity spans 2006 to 2025. The literature layer holds 13 publications for this pair: 5 Cochrane reviews, 2 meta-analyses, 1 randomised controlled trial publication and 5 clinical trial publications. Publication years run from 2014 to 2026. Because at least one synthesis-level source exists (systematic review, meta-analysis or Cochrane review), this pair has been assessed beyond single studies, although the synthesis may concern a different indication.
The RepurpOS disease-intelligence file for Asthma ranks 642 candidate therapeutics from Open Targets, ChEMBL, DGIdb and PubMed; only a minority carry direct clinical evidence, and this page covers one of those. Spontaneous remission context recorded for the condition: 26% of childhood-onset asthma in clinical remission by adulthood; <20% adult-onset achieves sustained remission; 65% long-term remission in mild-moderate vs 16% in severe.
Evidence table
| Evidence tier | A · Strong |
|---|---|
| Evidence score | 75.5 (trials 25.5, literature 30.0, tier 15, approved bonus 5.0) |
| Registered trials | 8 total: 0 recruiting, 1 active / not yet recruiting, 4 completed, 3 other |
| Linked publications | 13 (5 Cochrane reviews, 5 clinical trial publications, 2 meta-analyses, 1 randomised controlled trial publication) |
| Agent type | Drug (Small molecule) |
| Development stage (any indication) | Approved |
| Mechanism / class | Not recorded |
| Data sources | Open Targets, ChEMBL |
How the evidence score is calculated
- Each registered trial scores by status (recruiting / active / enrolling 3, completed 2.5, not yet recruiting 2, unknown 1, terminated / withdrawn / suspended 0.5) plus a phase bonus (phase 3-4 +2, phase 2 +1, phase 1 +0.5). The trial component is capped at 30.
- Each literature item scores by design (Cochrane review 5, meta-analysis 4, systematic review 3, RCT 3, clinical trial publication 2, curated reference 1.5, other PubMed record 1). The literature component is capped at 30.
- The existing evidence tier adds 15 (A / Strong), 10 (B / Moderate), 5 (C / Preliminary) or 0 (D / Anecdotal).
- Agents approved for any indication (max clinical phase 4) add 5, because an approved agent has an established safety profile that lowers the barrier to repurposing trials.
- The score ranks what has been studied, not what works. It does not read effect sizes or directions of effect.
Registered clinical trials
| NCT ID | Title | Status | Phase | Enrolment |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| NCT00377364 | Acetaminophen (Tylenol) for Mood and Memory Changes Associated With Corticosteroid Therapy 2006 | completed | Phase 4 | 30 |
| NCT01326494 | Reducing the Acute Care Burden of Childhood Asthma on Health Services in British Columbia 2011 | completed | Phase 4 | 92 |
| NCT06833814 | DOSE Trial: Optimal Dose of Oral Corticosteroids to Treat Asthma Exacerbations 2025 | not yet recruiting | Phase 4 | 36 |
| NCT03470311 | Benralizumab in Patients With Inadequate Response to Anti-IL5 Monoclonal Antibody Therapies 2018 | completed | Phase 3 | 20 |
| NCT03133897 | Dexamethasone Versus Prednisone for Asthma Treatment in the Pediatric Inpatient Population; a Feasibility Study 2018 | terminated | Phase 3 | 20 |
| NCT01615874 | Study of the Effect of Mometasone Furoate/Formoterol (MF/F), Montelukast and Beclomethasone Dipropionate (BDP) on Plasma Cortisol Levels of Children 5-11 Years Old With Persistent Asthma (P05574) 2013 | withdrawn | Phase 2 | — |
| NCT01621386 | Ventilatory Heterogeneity in Participants With Asthma (MK-0476-513) 2013 | completed | Phase 1 | 34 |
| NCT05035862 | Mechanisms of Interferon Gamma-primed Mesenchymal Stromal Cells (MSCs) for Moderate-to-severe Persistent Asthma 2022 | terminated | Phase 1 | 1 |
Published literature
- Clinical trial publication Oral corticosteroid reduction and discontinuation in adults with corticosteroid-dependent, severe, uncontrolled asthma treated with tezepelumab (WAYFINDER): a multicentre, single-arm, phase 3b trialJackson DJ, Lugogo NL, Gurnell M et al. · The Lancet. Respiratory medicine · 2026 · PMID 41317738
- Cochrane review The efficacy of dexamethasone compared to prednisone/prednisolone for the management of pediatric patients with acute exacerbation of asthma: a systematic review and meta-analysisWang H, Wang J, He X · The Journal of asthma : official journal of the Association for the Care of Asthma · 2025 · PMID 40577515
- Clinical trial publication Modification of asthma treatment efficacy by healthcare access: A reanalysis of AsthmaNet Step-Up Yellow Zone Inhaled Corticosteroids to Prevent Exacerbations (STICS) clinical trialGómez LF, Kinnee E, Kaufman JD et al. · Respiratory medicine · 2024 · PMID 39510322
- Clinical trial publication The Glucocorticoid Toxicity Index-Metabolic Domains, an abridged version of the Glucocorticoid Toxicity Index: post-hoc analysis of data from the ADVOCATE trialPatel NJ, Jayne DRW, Merkel PA et al. · The Lancet. Rheumatology · 2023 · PMID 38251552
- Cochrane review Dexamethasone versus prednisone/prednisolone in the management of pediatric patients with acute asthmatic exacerbations: a systematic review and meta-analysisDahan E, El Ghazal N, Nakanishi H et al. · The Journal of asthma : official journal of the Association for the Care of Asthma · 2023 · PMID 36461938
- Clinical trial publication As-Needed Use of Short-Acting β(2)-Agonists Alone Versus As-Needed Use of Short-Acting β(2)-Agonists Plus Inhaled Corticosteroids in Pediatric Patients With Mild Intermittent (Step 1) Asthma: A Cost-Effectiveness AnalysisRodríguez-Martínez CE, Sossa-Briceño MP, Buendia JA · The journal of allergy and clinical immunology. In practice · 2022 · PMID 35259534
- Meta-analysis Dexamethasone Versus Prednisone or Prednisolone for Acute Pediatric Asthma Exacerbations in the Emergency Department: A Meta-AnalysisCai KJ, Su SQ, Wang YG et al. · Pediatric emergency care · 2021 · PMID 32149991
- Clinical trial publication Patient Advocates for Low-Income Adults with Moderate to Severe Asthma: A Randomized Clinical TrialApter AJ, Perez L, Han X et al. · The journal of allergy and clinical immunology. In practice · 2020 · PMID 32673877
- Meta-analysis Oral steroid-sparing effect of high-dose inhaled corticosteroids in asthmaMaijers I, Kearns N, Harper J et al. · The European respiratory journal · 2020 · PMID 31558659
- Randomized controlled trial Effect of fixed-dose subcutaneous reslizumab on asthma exacerbations in patients with severe uncontrolled asthma and corticosteroid sparing in patients with oral corticosteroid-dependent asthma: results from two phase 3, randomised, double-blind, placebo-controlled trialsBernstein JA, Virchow JC, Murphy K et al. · The Lancet. Respiratory medicine · 2020 · PMID 32066536
- Cochrane review Safety of corticosteroids in young children with acute respiratory conditions: a systematic review and meta-analysisFernandes RM, Wingert A, Vandermeer B et al. · BMJ open · 2019 · PMID 31375615
- Cochrane review Intramuscular versus oral corticosteroids to reduce relapses following discharge from the emergency department for acute asthmaKirkland SW, Cross E, Campbell S et al. · The Cochrane database of systematic reviews · 2018 · PMID 29859017
- Cochrane review Effects of prednisone on eosinophilic bronchitis in asthma: a systematic review and meta-analysisSakae TM, Maurici R, Trevisol DJ et al. · Jornal brasileiro de pneumologia : publicacao oficial da Sociedade Brasileira de Pneumologia e Tisilogia · 2014 · PMID 25410844
Mechanism and notes
No mechanism of action is recorded for this pair in the source databases.
OSMF's existing evidence tier for this pair is A (Strong), derived from the strength of the disease association recorded in Open Targets and ChEMBL. The tier describes how well the drug-disease link is documented, not how well the drug works.
Frequently asked questions
Is Prednisone approved for Asthma?
Prednisone has reached the approved stage (maximum clinical phase 4) for at least one indication, so its use in Asthma would be drug repurposing rather than first-in-human development. This does not mean it is approved for Asthma. Approval status for the specific indication should always be confirmed with the relevant regulator and prescribing information.
Is Prednisone in clinical trials for Asthma?
ClinicalTrials.gov lists 8 registered trials linking Prednisone to Asthma: 1 is active or not yet recruiting; 4 have completed; 3 are terminated, withdrawn, suspended or of unknown status. The most advanced is Phase 4 (NCT01326494). It plans or enrolled 92 participants. Registration activity spans 2006 to 2025.
What does the evidence show for Prednisone in Asthma?
Prednisone has both completed registered trials and synthesis-level publications linked to Asthma. That is the strongest profile in this database, but the summaries here do not extract effect sizes, so read the linked reviews for direction and magnitude of benefit. OSMF's existing evidence tier for this pair is A (Strong), derived from the strength of the disease association recorded in Open Targets and ChEMBL. The tier describes how well the drug-disease link is documented, not how well the drug works.
Cite this page
Data: ClinicalTrials.gov, PubMed, Open Targets, ChEMBL, DGIdb and the OSMF therapeutic agent database. Last updated 2026-07-05. Page built 2026-10-07.