Asthma Series : Episode 1
Asthma treatment with Inhalers: useful or harmful?
“Doctor are you sure that I need inhalers for my problem?”Mrs. Desai snapped at me with her eyes wide open, as soon as I explained to her that she has asthma and needs inhaler medication.
I was not surprised at all. As a pulmonologist, I regularly see, examine and treat asthma patients at Green Lungs Clinic, Goregaon. Almost all are ready to take tablets but with inhalers, they are very uncomfortable.
Mrs. Desai was still staring at me with the same expressions when I kept three different types of inhalers on the table in front of her, to give a demonstration of the inhaler technique.
When I started talking I realized that she was hardly listening to me. Again not surprised at all, I decided to have a good detailed discussion about inhalers with her.
Why Inhalers? Why not Tablets?
“Doctor, Why are you giving inhalers? Give me tablets.”
“Mrs. Desai, What does the doctor give you if you have conjunctivitis?”
“Eye drops.”
“And, if you have ear pain?”
“Ear drops”
“If you get an ankle sprain, do you apply some balm on it? Or go to buy painkillers?”
“Of course, I apply balm, doctor. Why use a cannon if you can kill with a gun?”, Mrs. Desai blurted in an irritated voice.
“Exactly. So, you always prefer locally acting medicines like drops and balm, instead of popping tablets. Same way, Inhalers act locally on your breathing tubes. When you experience asthma symptoms, breathing tubes are contracted and become narrow. Inhaled medicines act on them and help them relax. This way they help relieve your symptoms.
They reach the problem area faster, hence give fast relief. They don’t have to go through the whole digestive system to get absorbed. Also, the dose of medicine needed is much less as compared to a tablet.”
Will I get addicted to inhalers used for asthma treatment?
“I will take your words for it, Doctor. But, will I get addicted to it?
“There is a difference between getting addicted to medicine and needing that medicine. For your condition, you NEED these inhalers. If a patient has blood pressure and he is started on medicines for it, his blood pressure comes under control; but he/she has to continue it to keep blood pressure under control. That does not mean that person is addicted. It just means that that person needs the medicine. Same way, you may need this medicine for a prolonged period. We will definitely stop it when u won’t need it.”
Can inhalers cure asthma?
“Ok Doctor, If you say so. But, will it be cured if I take inhalers?”
“Asthma is a health condition that can not be cured. It has so many factors involved,
Genetic factors ( can be transferred from one generation to the next).
Environmental ( Triggers which cause asthma symptoms).
Occupational (workplace exposure to triggers).
Asthma is a reaction of the body to the triggers. When the reaction is more than needed, one can suffer from asthma.
Why should I continue inhalers if I can not get rid of asthma permanently?
“If that is the case, Why should I continue inhalers if I can not get rid of asthma permanently?
“Very Good question.
A diabetic patient takes medicines to lower sugar. These medicines lower the sugar but cannot cure that patient’s Diabetes. Same thing is true with the treatment of blood pressure. Similar to this, asthma medicines are for asthma control and not for asthma cure. If you don't control asthma,it will worsen over a period of time, which becomes difficult to treat later.”
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What are the side effects of inhalers in asthma treatment?
“Ok doctor understood the importance of inhalers, in asthma treatment; but are there any side effects which I should be aware of?”
“If taken regularly, used properly and all instructions are followed, the side effects are negligible. If you weigh benefits and side effects, benefits definitely take upper hand.
There are few Side Effects you should be aware of
Sore throat
Oral thrush or fungal infection in the throat.
Hoarseness of voice.
Very rarely, tremors and palpitations.
All these side effects are rare if inhalers are used with optimum doses and correct te
chnique. This can also be avoided by doing thorough gargle after taking your inhaler medication.
Conclusion
Inhaler medicines are the mainstay of Asthma treatment. They act faster, they reach the problem area faster with least Side Effects, if any. Inhaler is a better and more effective alternative to tablets or medications.
keep reading our blog posts to know more about your asthma control.
Dr. Sandeep Tilve
Green Lungs Clinic