Examples are formoterol (brand names Atimos®, Foradil® and Oxis®), salmeterol (brand name Serevent® - a green-coloured inhaler) and indacaterol (brand name Onbrez Breezhaler®). Long-acting inhalers may be an option if symptoms remain troublesome despite taking a short-acting bronchodilator. These work in a similar way to the short-acting inhalers but each dose lasts at least 12 hours. Using two, one of each type, may help some people better than one type alone. The beta-agonist and antimuscarinic inhalers work in different ways. Some people need to use an inhaler regularly. Some people with mild or intermittent symptoms only need an inhaler as required for when breathlessness or wheeze occurs. The effect from both types typically lasts for 3-6 hours. Typically, symptoms of wheeze and breathlessness improve within 5-15 minutes with a beta-agonist inhaler, and within 30-40 minutes with an antimuscarinic inhaler. These inhalers work well for some people but not so well in others. For example, ipratropium (brand name Atrovent®). Other inhalers containing different medicines can be blue too. These inhalers are often (but not always) blue in colour. Examples are salbutamol (brand names include Airomir®, Asmasal®, Salamol®, Salbulin®, Pulvinal Salbutamol® and Ventolin®) and terbutaline (brand name Bricanyl®). These relax the muscles in the airways (bronchi) to open them up (dilate them) as wide as possible. There are also combination inhalers containing two types of medicine.Īn inhaler with a bronchodilator medicine is often prescribed. In the treatment of COPD, the medicines inside inhalers can be grouped into short-acting bronchodilators, long-acting bronchodilators and steroids. This information will prevent mistakes and confusion. It might be helpful to keep a list of the names of your medicines and inhalers in your wallet or purse. This might be important if you need to see a doctor who does not have your medical records (such as in A&E, if you are on holiday, or outside the normal opening hours of your GP surgery). This can be confusing.īecause there are lots of different coloured inhalers available, it is helpful to remember their names, as well as the colour of the device. This means that there are many types of inhaler available on prescription, all of which are produced in different colours. For some medicines there are different inhaler devices that deliver the same medicine. Inhalers can have generic names and be produced by different drug companies too. There are many different brands of inhalers. Different drug companies can use the generic medicine and produce different brands - the proprietary medicine names. The proper medicine name is called the generic name. The airways and lungs are treated but little of the medicine gets into the rest of the body (via the bloodstream). This means that you need a much smaller dose than if you took the medicine as a tablet or liquid by mouth. The medicine inside an inhaler goes straight into the airways when you breathe in. There are also separate leaflets called Asthma and Inhalers for Asthma. For general information about COPD, see the separate leaflet called Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease. This leaflet is about inhalers for chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD).
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