Dunedin researchers are set to join a worldwide study in search of a cure for a condition affecting at least 200,000 New Zealanders.
A team at the Caversham Medical Centre will join the study, which will test a potential new treatment for emphysema.
The research will involve testing a new drug combination and the medical centre is calling for local volunteers.
Associate Prof Jim Reid said researching more treatment options for the condition was vital.
''We are trying to keep people out of hospital and improve quality of life.''
The condition, also known as chronic bronchitis or smokers' cough, has no known cure and affects an estimated 15% of New Zealanders over the age of 45.
Smoking is the leading cause of emphysema. However, other factors, such as air pollution and genetics, can also have an effect.
There was often a degree of stigma around the condition, with some doctors seeing it as ''self-inflicted'', Prof Reid said.
The new approach would combine a long-acting bronchodilator with an inhaled steroid designed to decrease resistance in the airway and increase air flow to the lungs.
''It's a new treatment and what we're really trying to do is prevent the exacerbation attacks.''
Prof Reid and his team were hoping for ''as many [volunteers] as we can get''.
Volunteers must be emphysema sufferers, aged over 40, who are taking regular medication.
''We hope that we will get at least 10-15,'' he said.
- Alastair Lynn
