Types of asthma inhalers include metered dose inhalers--MDIs--or dry powder inhalers--DPIs. Aerosolized medications used to treat asthma are a crucial part of the disease-management process. According to National Jewish Health, MDIs containing...
Corticosteroids can be used as maintenance medications to prevent asthma flare-ups or to treat severe asthma attacks. These drugs relieve inflammation in the airway and indirectly cause relaxation of the smooth muscles in the air passages. Inhaled...
Inhalers are hand-held, portable devices that deliver medicine directly to the lungs. A New England Journal of Medicine-published study showed that higher amounts of medicine can reach the airways and side effects are fewer with inhalers than with...
Many people with asthma take two kinds of medications: "long-term" maintenance medications to prevent an asthma attack, and "rescue" medications to provide rapid, short-term relief at the onset of symptoms. Asthma medications are taken orally, by...
The Serevent Diskus is a teal-green dry-powder inhaler containing 28 or 60 units of salmeterol xinafoate inhalation powder, which is a long-acting medication for chronic asthma. Multiple precautions and warnings are associated with this...
Asthma medications fall into two categories: long-term control medications and rescue, or quick-relief medications. The National Asthma Education and Prevention Program Expert Panel developed a therapy approach to administering asthma medications....
Asthma is a chronic respiratory disease that affects approximately 300 million across the world, according to the World Health Organization. Asthma causes mucus build-up and inflammation of the airways that result in symptoms such as wheezing,...
Understanding how an asthma inhaler works requires an understanding of the physiology behind asthma. Asthma occurs when a hypersensitive immune system reacts to irritation of the airways. This irritation can be due to dust, smoke, stress, pollen...
Coughing is a symptom and not a disease. People with asthma will have symptoms when their airways are narrowed, swollen or filled with mucus, making air exchange in the lungs difficult. As a response to these symptoms, the body uses coughing to...
Anticholinergic bronchodilators block parasympathetic nervous fibers, relaxing the smooth muscles in the airway. In other words, these medications reduce the airway constriction experienced by so many asthmatics. Ipratropium bromide and tiotropium...
If you've got asthma, you know that your asthma inhaler can come to your rescue in case of an emergency. Some inhaled asthma medications can also help you prevent asthma attacks by keeping your symptoms under control. For the best asthma control,...
Asthma is an inflammatory disease that affects the airways. It is caused by allergens and other conditions like exercise. In asthma, the airways become constricted and result in wheezing or difficulty breathing, coughing and chest tightness. This...
While asthma can't be cured, it can be managed through education and early intervention. The goal of asthma management through symptom classification treats the disease process to avoid flare-ups before they escalate. The National Heart, Lung and...
Bronchodilators are medicines used to relax the smooth muscle around the airways to "open up" the lungs. They can relieve spasm in these muscles as well. This group of medicines is used to treat asthma, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease,...
Just because you have asthma doesn't mean your quality of life needs to suffer. With proper asthma treatments, you can expect to participate fully in work, school and sports. You will also be able to sleep through the night and experience a...
Reliever inhalers are used after asthma symptoms appear. The bronchodilator drugs relax the muscles in your airways, allowing them to open up and alleviate the wheezing, coughing or other symptoms you are experiencing. Reliever inhalers are used...
Asthma is a common chronic lung condition that causes difficulty breathing. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) estimate that over 7 percent of adults and over 9 percent of children in the U.S. have asthma. There are several...
Asthma medication is commonly administered through inhaler devices, or bronchodilators, although doctors sometimes prescribe medicine in pill form, according to the National Heart, Lung and Blood Institute. The inhalers bring medicine directly to...
Sometimes medications contain compounds that are provide no medicinal value. Anhydrous lactose is found in some tablets and other kinds of drugs and generally does not cause any health problems, but it can be problematic if you are lactose...
When asthma attacks strike, the inflamed air passages squeeze tighter and make catching your breath even more difficult. The use of anti-inflammatory medications, often steroids that are inhaled, is usually recommended to ease inflammation and...
There are different types of inhalers available to treat asthma. Metered-dose inhalers, also known as MDI, are inhalers that release fixed doses of medication in aerosol form. These MDI inhalers are puffers. Dry powder inhalers, or DPI, contain a...
If you or your child suffer from chronic diseases such as asthma or sleep apnea, or an acute illness such as pneumonia or bronchitis, you may require in-home breathing treatments. If your breathing treatments do not seem to work as well as they...
Lactose monohydrate, or alpha-lactose monohydrate, is a crystalline milk powder. It has various properties that make it useful as a pharmaceutical filler in the manufacture of capsules and tablets. The powder is available in different grades,...
Asthma is a lung disorder characterized by hypersensitivity of the airways. This leads to spasms and constriction of the bronchioles followed by inflammation. Chemicals are released in the inflammatory process that cause swelling and narrowing of...
Spiriva is the brand name for tiotropium inhalation, an anticholinergic agent doctors prescribe to treat conditions like emphysema, bronchitis and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease. It works by preventing the airways of the lungs from...
Crack cocaine (benzoylmethylecgonine) is an addictive stimulant that has a high potential for abuse. Its street name is "crack." The drug can be snorted as a dry hydrochloride salt powder, inhaled as a vapor, or dissolved and injected into the...
Asthma is a disease of the airways leading into the lungs. It is characterized both by narrowing of the airways, or bronchoconstriction, and inflammation of the lining of the airways. Successful treatment of asthma involves controlling both...
If you are the parent of a child still in diapers, you are probably no stranger to dry (or diaper) rash on a baby. Dry rash is basically irritated skin that is red, cracked, and painful for your child. There are many different things you can do...
Asthma is a disorder that produces episodic attacks separated by times with few or no symptoms. Attacks usually start abruptly with shortness of breath and wheezing. Triggers can be environmental irritants or allergens, diet, exercise, stress and...
