Randomized Sham-controlled Trial of Targeted Lung Denervation in Patients with Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease (AIRFLOW-3)
This randomized, sham-controlled trial (AIRFLOW-3) assessed whether targeted lung denervation improves outcomes in patients with COPD compared to optimal medical therapy. While it did not reduce exacerbations (primary endpoint), it showed modest improvements in dyspnoea, with post hoc analyses suggesting potential benefit in a specific airway-predominant patient subgroup.
Shah PL, Slebos DJ, Sue R, Bhatt SP, Ghattas C, Strange C, Degano B, Valipour A, Eisenmann S, De Cardenas J, Marquette CH, Soto-Soto J, Sciurba FC, Conway F, Tonkin J, Tana A, Marchetti N, Hartman JE, Heluain V, Guibert N, Criner GJ. Randomized Sham-controlled Trial of Targeted Lung Denervation in Patients with Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease (AIRFLOW-3). Am J Respir Crit Care Med. 2025 Dec;211(12):2318-2329. doi: 10.1164/rccm.202502-0404OC. PMID: 40920914; PMCID: PMC12700255.