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Excerpt
Inhalers come in different forms and have different purposes. Older inhalers are referred to as metered-dose inhalers (MDIs) and have medicine mixed with a propellant. Newer inhalers contain dry powder which needs to be protected from high humidity to prevent breakdown, so these inhalers should not be stored in the bathroom.
The two most common types of inhalers are bronchodilators and corticosteroids. Bronchodilators can be long-acting or short-acting. Long-acting bronchodilators are used on a schedule basis, which means you may be using the inhaler once or twice a day, everyday. Short-acting inhalers are also called rescue inhalers and are only used when you are having problems breathing. Rescue inhalers can also be used before exercise or before an expected allergen that might cause an asthma “attack,” such as going into a house with a cat.
Corticosteroid inhalers, like long-acting bronchodilators, are considered maintenance medications and are used on a scheduled basis. Corticosteroids are anti-inflammatory medications. Asthma is thought to be an inflammatory disease, so most people with asthma that have frequent symptoms will be on an inhaled corticosteroid.
Nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory inhalers are also available. They are sometimes used in children or to prevent asthma problems with exercise.
Inhalers can also come in different shapes. Most of us have seen the ones that look like an “L”. Other shapes include discs, Turbuhalers, Aerolizers, and Twisthalers.
Some inhalers come with devices called spacers that are a great help to deliver the medicine into the lungs, especially for people with arthritis, problems following directions, or smaller children. Spacers can also be added to many inhalers, especially rescue inhalers, to help deliver the medicine more efficiently to the lungs.
