Does body mass index influence responsiveness to inhaled corticosteroids in persistent asthma?

Overweight patients with persistent asthma may have attenuated symptom and FeNO dose responses to inhaled budesonide compared with normal weight patients with asthma, with no differences in FEV1 or methacholine PC20 between groups. Attenuated cortisol suppression in the overweight group may be the clue to this difference, alluding to reduced peripheral lung deposition or absorption in overweight patients with asthma.