Your Child and Asthma - How to Take Asthma Medicines

Treatment of Asthma

How to Take Asthma Medicines

Inhaled medicines go directly to the lungs. They give your child the most benefit with the least side effects. There are several ways to take inhaled medicines.

Metered dose inhalers deliver the medicine as a spray. These work best when used with a spacer device. Metered dose inhalers are sometimes called "inhalers" or "puffers."
Spacer devices are used with metered dose inhalers. With a spacer, more medicine goes directly into the lungs and less gets in the mouth and on the throat. The medicine does not taste as bad when a spacer is used. Commonly used brands of spacers include AeroChamber® and InspirEase®.

Dry powder inhalers allow your child to inhale the medicine as a dry powder. Dry powder inhalers are convenient because they are small and do not require a spacer device. To use them your child needs to suck air in rapidly.

Nebulizers deliver the medicine as a fine mist. They are often used in the clinic or emergency room to give a "breathing treatment." A home nebulizer may help children who are too young to use a metered dose inhaler. It takes about 15 minutes to give a "breathing treatment."

How to use a metered dose inhaler

Inhalers need to be used correctly to work. Ask your doctor, nurse, respiratory therapist, or pharmacist to check the way your child uses inhalers.
Help your child follow these steps:

Shake the inhaler well and insert it into the spacer device.
Breathe out as much as possible.
Place the mouthpiece of the spacer into his/her mouth.
Press down on the medication canister (releasing 1 puff of medicine).
Breathe in slowly and deeply. Fill his/her lungs with as much air as possible.
Hold his/her breath for 10 seconds (or as long as possible).
Breathe out.
Then take in another deep breath from the spacer device. Hold it for 10 seconds. It takes 2 to 3 deep breaths to get all of the medication from a single puff into the lungs.
Wait 1 minute before taking the next puff.
When done, be sure to replace the protective cap on the mouthpiece of the inhaler.
Rinse his/her mouth after using an inhaled corticosteroid (Beclovent®, Vanceril®, Azmacort®, or Aerobid®).

Which inhaler should my child use first?

Use the inhaled symptom relieving (bronchodilator) medication first. It opens up the breathing tubes so that the preventive (inhaled anti-inflammatory) medication can get into your child's lungs better.

How many puffs are left?

An inhaler may discharge even when there is no medicine left. To find out when your inhaler will be out of medicine, divide the number of puffs used each day by the number of puffs in the canister. This will give you the number of days the medication will last. Mark this day on your calendar. When this day comes, consider the inhaler to be empty.
An alternative method is to make a check mark each time you take a puff. When the number of check marks equals the number of puffs in your inhaler, your inhaler is empty.

Some inhalers will float at the surface of a bowl of water when they are empty and sink to the bottom when they are full. This method is not very accurate, especially if your canister is more than half empty. If you use this method and your symptoms get worse, you may need a new canister. This method won't work with cromolyn (Intal®), nedocromil (Tilade®), Aerobid® and Azmacort® inhalers.

Introduction
Understanding Asthma
Treatment of Asthma
Living with Asthma

Site design and illustrations by Green Island Graphics

		How to Take Asthma Medicines

		Inhaled medicines go directly to the lungs. They give your child the most benefit with the least side effects. There are several ways to take inhaled medicines. Metered dose inhalers deliver the medicine as a spray. These work best when used with a spacer device. Metered dose inhalers are sometimes called "inhalers" or "puffers." Spacer devices are used with metered dose inhalers. With a spacer, more medicine goes directly into the lungs and less gets in the mouth and on the throat. The medicine does not taste as bad when a spacer is used. Commonly used brands of spacers include AeroChamber® and InspirEase®. Dry powder inhalers allow your child to inhale the medicine as a dry powder. Dry powder inhalers are convenient because they are small and do not require a spacer device. To use them your child needs to suck air in rapidly. Nebulizers deliver the medicine as a fine mist. They are often used in the clinic or emergency room to give a "breathing treatment." A home nebulizer may help children who are too young to use a metered dose inhaler. It takes about 15 minutes to give a "breathing treatment." How to use a metered dose inhaler Inhalers need to be used correctly to work. Ask your doctor, nurse, respiratory therapist, or pharmacist to check the way your child uses inhalers. Help your child follow these steps: Shake the inhaler well and insert it into the spacer device. Breathe out as much as possible. Place the mouthpiece of the spacer into his/her mouth. Press down on the medication canister (releasing 1 puff of medicine). Breathe in slowly and deeply. Fill his/her lungs with as much air as possible. Hold his/her breath for 10 seconds (or as long as possible). Breathe out. Then take in another deep breath from the spacer device. Hold it for 10 seconds. It takes 2 to 3 deep breaths to get all of the medication from a single puff into the lungs. Wait 1 minute before taking the next puff. When done, be sure to replace the protective cap on the mouthpiece of the inhaler. Rinse his/her mouth after using an inhaled corticosteroid (Beclovent®, Vanceril®, Azmacort®, or Aerobid®). Which inhaler should my child use first? Use the inhaled symptom relieving (bronchodilator) medication first. It opens up the breathing tubes so that the preventive (inhaled anti-inflammatory) medication can get into your child's lungs better. How many puffs are left? An inhaler may discharge even when there is no medicine left. To find out when your inhaler will be out of medicine, divide the number of puffs used each day by the number of puffs in the canister. This will give you the number of days the medication will last. Mark this day on your calendar. When this day comes, consider the inhaler to be empty. An alternative method is to make a check mark each time you take a puff. When the number of check marks equals the number of puffs in your inhaler, your inhaler is empty. Some inhalers will float at the surface of a bowl of water when they are empty and sink to the bottom when they are full. This method is not very accurate, especially if your canister is more than half empty. If you use this method and your symptoms get worse, you may need a new canister. This method won't work with cromolyn (Intal®), nedocromil (Tilade®), Aerobid® and Azmacort® inhalers.

		Introduction Understanding Asthma Treatment of Asthma Living with Asthma Site design and illustrations by Green Island Graphics