Benefits Of Using Metered Dose Inhaler With Spacer

Many people have a hard time learning how to use metered dose inhalers correctly. Quite often, too much of asthma medicine ends up in the mouth and throat instead of passing into the lung's small airways where it is most needed to control the asthma symptoms. The result can be poor control of asthma, as well as side effects from getting the wrong dose of medicine, like sore throat, dry mouth, bad taste etc.

Cleaning And Priming Of HFA Inhalers

Asthma inhalers have recently been changed. The chemical used to push the medicine out of the inhaler (the propellant) has been switched from chlorofluorocarbon (CFC) to a more environmentally friendly substance called hydrofluoroalkane (HFA).

The medicine in the new HFA inhaler is exactly the same as the old CFC inhaler, but there are a few differences:

Use-Inhalers: A new interactive way to learn how to use your inhaler correctly

One in 12 Americans suffer from Asthma. Nearly 6-8 percent of the general population has Asthma. Inhalation therapy is one of the most important modes of treatment in Asthma but clinical studies show that most of the Asthma patients do not use their inhalers correctly thereby leading to poor Asthma control.

Inhaler Vendors And Their Comparison Including Market Share

The largest manufacturers of inhalers are GlaxoSmithKline (makers of the Advair Diskus and Flixotide), Merck (makers of Asmanex and Proventil HFA), AstraZeneca (makers of Pulmicort and Symbicort) and Boehringer-Ingelheim (makers of Atrovent, Combivent, and Spiriva which are used for asthma, COPD, and emphysema). They all manufacture the medication that is delivered by the inhaler, but 3M Drug Delivery Systems does some of the manufacturing of the MDI canisters and other inhaler components and asthma supplies.

Medical Facts About Advair Diskus Inhaler

One of the devices used to take dry powder medicine is a Diskus inhaler. The Diskus inhaler is used with medicines such as Advair, Serevent and Flovent.

One of the active ingredients in ADVAIR DISKUS (fluticasone propionate), increase the risk of asthma-related death. Data from a large placebo-controlled US study that compared the safety of salmeterol (SEREVENT Inhalation Aerosol) or placebo added to usual asthma therapy showed an increase in asthma-related deaths in patients receiving salmeterol

Overview Of Inhalation Therapy

The preferred modern treatment of respiratory diseases is with inhalation therapy, where the medicine is not taken as a tablet or liquid by mouth (orally), but is breathed in, or inhaled. Relief is felt from where the disease originates – the lungs. This type of therapy is also known as local or topical therapy.

ProAir HFA quick-relief inhaler

ProAir HFA (Albuterol) is a prescription asthma medication. It is used to treat or prevent airway spasms, as well as prevent exercise-induced asthma. Part of a class of asthma drugs known as beta-adrenergic receptor agonists (beta agonists for short), it works by opening up the lung airways and allowing more air to get into and through the lungs. Unlike older Albuterol inhalers, ProAir HFA is environmentally friendly.

Priming your ProAir HFA:

What are Asthma Rescue Inhalers?

What is a Spacer?

A spacer device is a plastic cylinder, designed to make a metered-dose inhaler easier to use. Many people find it difficult to co-ordinate pushing down the canister of their inhaler with breathing in deeply, so a spacer device is a useful way to remedy this problem. The spacer device also helps to slow down the aerosolized particles that you breathe in, helping them to get down into the lung and giving you longer to breathe them in.

Pharmacists Need Effective Educational Tools to Train Asthma Patients on Correct Inhaler Technique

Pharmacists have become more active in patient care, and the benefits of pharmacists counseling patients about medications have been recognized.