Efficacy And Safety Of GW642444M Comparing Placebo In Adolescent And Adult Subjects With Persistent Asthma.

Inclusion criteria

• Aged 12 years of age or older at Visit 1 For sites in the following countries, subjects recruited will be ³ 18 years of age: Germany, Hungary and the Russian Federation and any other countries where local regulations or the regulatory status of study medication permit enrolment of adults only.
• Male or eligible female subjects

A female is eligible to enter and participate in the study if she is of:

Non-child bearing potential (i.e. physiologically incapable of becoming pregnant), including any female who is post-menopausal.

Child bearing potential, has a negative pregnancy test at screening, and agrees to one of the following acceptable contraceptive methods used consistently and correctly (i.e. in accordance with the approved product label and the instructions of the physician for the duration of the study - screening to follow-up contact):

• Complete abstinence from intercourse from screening until 2 weeks after the follow-up contact; or
• Sterilisation of male partner (vasectomy with documentation of azoospermia) prior to female subject entry into the study, and this male partner is the sole partner for that subject; or
• Implants of levonorgestral inserted for at least 1 month prior to the study medication administration but not beyond the third successive year following insertion; or
• Injectable progestogen administered for at least 1 month prior to study medication administration and administered for 1 month following study completion; or
• Oral contraceptive (combined or progestogen only) administered for at least one monthly cycle prior to study medication administration; or
• Double barrier method: condom or occlusive cap (diaphragm or cervical/vault caps) plus spermicidal agent (foam/gel/film/cream/suppository) N.B. For German sites female subjects must use a method of birth control other than the double barrier method
• An intrauterine device (IUD), inserted by a qualified physician, with published data showing that the highest expected failure rate is less than 1% per year; or
• Estrogenic vaginal ring inserted for at least 1 month prior to study medication administration; or
• Percutaneous contraceptive patches in place for at least 1 month prior to study medication administration Female subjects should not be enrolled if they are pregnant, or lactating, or plan to become pregnant during the time of study participation.
• Documented clinical history of persistent asthma, as defined by the National Institutes of Health [NIH, 2007] first diagnosed at least 6 months prior to Visit 1.
• Subjects with current reversible airways disease as demonstrated at Visit 1 by an increase in FEV1 of ≥ 12% and ≥ 200ml over the pre-salbutamol/albuterol FEV1 at approximately 30 minutes after the inhalation of 400mcg of salbutamol/albuterol via MDI (spacer permitted for reversibility testing only if required) or one nebulised salbutamol/albuterol solution.
• Subjects must be using an inhaled corticosteroid and have been maintained on a stable dose for 4 weeks prior to Visit 1 at one of the following doses:

Maximum Allowable Concurrent Inhaled Corticosteroid Doses

Asthma Therapy(Maximum Daily Dose (mcg/day)) fluticasone propionate MDI CFC/HFA (≤ 880mcg1/ ≤1000mcg2) fluticasone propionate DPI(≤ 1000mcg) beclomethasone dipropionate(≤ 1680mcg1/ ≤ 2000mcg2) beclomethasone dipropionate HFA (QVAR)(≤ 640mcg1/ ≤ 800mcg2) budesonide DPI/MDI(≤ 2000mcg) Flunisolide(≤ 2000mcg) triamcinolone acetonide(≤ 2000mcg) mometasone furoate(≤ 880mcg) Ciclesonide(≤ 320mcg1/ ≤ 400mcg2)

CFC=chlorofluorocarbon HFA=hydrofluoroalkane

• Ex-actuator dose
• Ex-valve dose
• Pre-bronchodilator FEV1 between ≥ 40 - ≤ 90% predicted at Visit 1. NHANES III predicted values will be used for subjects aged ≥ 12 years and adjustments to predicted values will be made for African American subjects [Hankinson, 1999].
• Appropriately signed and dated informed consent has been obtained.
• Capable of withholding salbutamol/albuterol use for ≥ 6 hou