Macrolide therapy decreases chronic obstructive pulmonary disease exacerbation: a meta-analysis.

Background: Macrolide antibiotics have anti-inflammatory effects, and long-term administration may reduce chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) exacerbations.

Objective: To investigate the effects of long-term treatment of macrolide therapy for COPD.

Methods: We searched the PubMed and Embase databases to identify randomized controlled trials that evaluated the effect of macrolide therapy (of at least 2 weeks) for COPD.