Bronchiectasis is a chronic lung condition characterized by permanently widened, thickened, and scarred airways that trap mucus and foster recurrent bacterial infections, causing persistent cough, large amounts of sputum, breathlessness, and frequent exacerbations. It can follow pneumonia, tuberculosis, or other lung infections, or occur alongside conditions like cystic fibrosis, primary ciliary dyskinesia, or immune deficiencies.
What's actually going on in research
No drug is currently approved specifically for non-cystic fibrosis bronchiectasis, and management relies on airway clearance, antibiotics for exacerbations, and sometimes long-term low-dose macrolide antibiotics. Trials are now testing inhaled antibiotics, anti-inflammatory drugs including neutrophil elastase inhibitors, and mucoactive agents specifically designed for this condition. Disease-modifying approaches targeting the underlying lung immune dysfunction are an active area of development.
Inhaled antibiotics
Inhaled aztreonam, ciprofloxacin, and other antibiotic formulations are in trials to suppress dominant bacterial pathogens such as Pseudomonas aeruginosa and reduce exacerbation frequency in chronically infected patients.
Anti-neutrophil elastase therapy
Brensocatib, an inhibitor of dipeptidyl peptidase 1 that reduces neutrophil-mediated airway damage, showed reduced exacerbations in a phase 3 trial and represents a potential first approved disease-modifying drug for bronchiectasis.
Mucoactive airway clearance
Novel mucolytic and mucokinetic agents including inhaled mannitol and hypertonic saline variants are being studied to improve mucus clearance and complement physical airway clearance techniques.
What to know before you search
Eligibility depends on sputum bacteriology, exacerbation frequency, lung function, and whether a specific underlying cause has been identified.
What types of trials are currently open
- Inhaled antibiotic trials — Testing antibiotic formulations delivered directly to the airways to suppress chronic bacterial infection.
- Anti-inflammatory trials — Evaluating neutrophil elastase inhibitors and other drugs targeting airway inflammation.
- Mucoactive therapy trials — Studying agents that improve mucus clearance and complement airway physiotherapy.
- Macrolide antibiotic trials — Refining long-term low-dose macrolide strategies for exacerbation prevention.
- Underlying cause trials — Treating specific causes such as primary ciliary dyskinesia or immune deficiency to reduce bronchiectasis progression.
Recently added Bronchiectasis trials
Correlation of Inflammatory Markers and Radiological Findings in Stable Bronchiectasis Patients With Exacerbation Phenotype
Bronchiectasis, also referred to as non-cystic fibrosis (non-CF) bronchiectasis, is a chronic respiratory disease defined by abnormal and irreversible dilatation of the bronchi (1). Dilatation of the bronchial lumen predisposes to infection (2). Recurrent infection and airway inflammation leads to tissue damage and inflammation that leads to excess mucus production and delayed mucociliary clearance, predisposing the patient to recurrent and chronic infections (3). This in turn creates a cycle of further tissue damage and infection (4), leading to recurrent exacerbations, hospitalizations and loss of lung function. Non-CF bronchiectasis patients who experience frequent exacerbations (≥2 per year) represent a high-risk group with accelerated disease progression.Bronchiectasis has become a major health concern due to its increasing prevalence and associated healthcare costs (5). The disease can be caused by many different etiologies, which may be causative, synergistic, or coincidental, depending on the manner in which they interact and it is clinically characterized by a variety of symptoms, including cough, sputum production and airway infection, and can often present with recurrent exacerbations (6). An exacerbation is generally defined as a sustained clinical deterioration characterized by an increase in symptoms, which may include increased cough, increased sputum volume or change in consistency, increased sputum purulence (color change), increased breathlessness and/or reduced exercise tolerance, increased fatigue and/or malaise, hemoptysis for at least 48 h requiring a change in treatment. Recurrent exacerbations are related to elevated systemic and airway inflammation, deterioration of lung function and progression of the disease(7). In addition to known etiologies of bronchiectasis, several other diseases may occur at any stage of bronchiectasis and are likely major contributors to increased hospitalizations, healthcare utilization and socioeconomic costs. These include cardiovascular disorders, gastro-oesophageal reflux disease (GORD), psychological illnesses, pulmonary hypertension, cognitive impairment, and lung, oesophageal and hematological malignancies (8-9).
Immune Status and Disease Control of Inflammatory Airway Diseases
The goal of this study is to learn how the body's immune system affects disease control in people with different airway inflammatory diseases.We want to understand: 1.Whether specific immune cell patterns in the blood are linked to how severe the disease is or how well it is controlled. Participants will: 1. Answer questions about their health and symptoms. 2. Give blood samples 3. Have lung function tests and other standard check-ups. 4. share sleep study results. We will compare people with airway diseases to healthy volunteers to see how their immune systems differ.
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