The surprising answer is, “No, not necessarily and not usually.” Several studies have demonstrated that inhaled asthma medication delivered from an inhaler (MDI or DPI) is just as effective as that administered via a nebulizer,provided that a valved holding chamber is used with the MDI and the patient has mastered appropriate MDI or DPI technique. [...]

A nebulizer is device powered by electrical current or batteries that creates a fine mist of medicine particles that can be inhaled into the lungs’ breathing passages. Nebulizers are fitted with either a mouthpiece or a face mask. Babies and very young children are candidates for the latter. Many different medications used in asthma treatment [...]

A valved holding chamber (VHC) is a commercially manufactured device that is designed to be used in con-junction with MDIs. VHCs make it easier to inhale asthma medicines from MDIs, increase the amount of medicine delivered directly to the lungs, and reduce potential side effects such as voice hoarseness and thrush. Purchasing a VHC in [...]

It is easy to know when a DPI is empty because DPIs have incorporated dose counters that help you keep track of how many doses remain in the inhaler and remind you when to refill your prescription. Some dose counters count down as you use each dose or puff of medicine. Others count down every [...]

Your doctor has instructed you to rinse your mouth after using your inhaler in order to gently wash away any medicine particles that were not inhaled into the lungs and may have remained behind in your throat. It is especially important to rinse your mouth after each use of any of the daily-use maintenance anti-inflammatory [...]

MDIs are convenient, portable, and highly reliable devices designed to deliver active medicine directly into the lungs by inhalation. MDIs are conceptually similar to DPIs. Both MDIs and DPIs allow for the delivery of accurate, pre-determined doses of medicine directly to the respiratory passages. MDIs and DPIs also exhibit fundamental differences. All MDIs use a [...]

DPIs deliver asthma medicine as very fine particles of powder. There are many types of DPIs available on the market in the United States. Additional DPIs are sold abroad. Each type of DPI is manufactured by a different pharmaceutical company, and each type of DPI consequently has its specific set of instructions for optimal use. [...]

Yes, the Diskus is one type of DPI device used in asthma treatment. Other DPI devices that allow for inhalation of asthma medicines include the Aerolizer, the Flex-haler (previously called the Turbuhaler), and the Twisthaler. Some devices such as the Diskhaler and the Clickhaler are not available in the United States but are used abroad. [...]

What makes HFA inhaler medicine different from the inhaler medicine I was prescribed a few years ago? All MDIs contain active asthma medicine along with an inert material called a propellant. The actual medicine in your current HFA inhaler is identical to that found in your older inhaler. The difference lies in an inactive ingredient, [...]

The Montreal Protocol is a landmark, international treaty designed to enhance air quality and to protect the upper-most (or stratospheric) ozone layer. In 1987, 24 countries, as well as the European Economic Community, negotiated and signed The Montreal Protocol on Substances that Deplete the Ozone Layer. The initial protocol aimed to decrease the use of [...]

The inhaled route of medication delivery represents an ideal method of treating asthma. Asthma is a disease that involves the lungs and bronchial passageways. It therefore makes perfect sense to deliver the medicine directly where it is needed—right into the air passages. When inhaled correctly, asthma medication goes precisely where it is required, with minimal, [...]

If you are awakened from sleep in the early morning hours, at 2 or 3  AM for example, with uncomfortable breathing or respiratory symptoms, you are experiencing what asthma specialists refer to as “nocturnal awakenings,” or “nocturnal symptoms.” Nocturnal awakenings due to asthma are never normal and are undesirable from many points of view. Apart [...]

All medicines will have at least four different names as they make it from the laboratory to your medicine cabinet. When a drug is first developed, it is given a chemical name that describes its molecular composition. Chemical names are accurate descriptors but are complicated and cumbersome, with parentheses and subscripts, numbers and initials. The [...]

Asthma is characterized by periods of increased activity and of symptom remission, as explained in contemporary view of asthma. When your asthma is active (persistent, as per the NAEPP classification), you will need to use your asthma medication daily and continue to use it for some time after your asthma becomes better controlled, at which [...]

Different classes of medicines are useful in the treatment of asthma. The NAEPP’s asthma classification helps define the severity of a person’s asthma and assists in guiding therapy. Notice that for each asthma classification, the NAEPP makes specific suggestions about the best type of medicine to use for treating that specific level of asthma. Asthma [...]

Endotracheal intubation is performed in the setting of respiratory failure due to any cause, including respiratory failure from asthma. It is a potentially life-saving medical intervention. Patients who require endotracheal intubation are critically ill, because their lungs are unable to take in oxygen and exhale carbon dioxide. The intubation procedure itself can be performed in [...]

Respiratory failure develops when the lungs and respiratory system become unable to provide the body with sufficient oxygen (O2) and fail to excrete or “blow off ” accumulated carbon dioxide (CO2). When the major disturbance is primarily an inability of the respiratory system to meet the body’s oxygen (O2) requirements, then hypoxemic respiratory failure is [...]

Fatal and near-fatal asthma have been the subject of much interest and study. By obtaining as much information as possible on persons who die or almost die of asthma, we can learn how to prevent similar deaths in the future. Fatal Asthma: Risk Factors Prior history of sudden, rapidly progressive severe exacerbations Prior history of [...]

Yes, asthma can be fatal. Thousands of people die each year in the United States from uncontrolled asthma. Asthma is a highly treatable disease. Death from asthma is especially tragic because each one of those deaths is theoretically 100% preventable. Analysis of recent trends in the United States suggests that after decades of increasing, the [...]

The actual treatment you receive in the emergency department of the hospital depends on the individual characteristics of your asthma, other health conditions you may have, as well as the severity of your symptoms when you arrive in the emergency room. In general, you can expect three components to your emergency care. The first will [...]