Should you use a spacer when you use your asthma inhaler?

Well, this is obviously a question for your doctor but if you haven’t asked your doctor or they haven’t suggested one, you should for sure ask. For me and for a lot of people, this is a BIG YES YOU SHOULD.

Spacers help you to use your asthma inhaler properly.  That is the simple answer.   The longer answer is that using an inhaler isn’t easy.  It seems easy, we all get used to using it and think we have it down but it isn’t easy.   It is hard.  You have to time your breathing and aim correctly and maintain the correct head posture.  And on top of that you might be wheezing or be feeling the anxiety that comes with knowing you need some help with your breathing.

A spacer puts all of that in the right place and eliminates a lot of that timing.  Studies have also shown that spacers get more medicine from the dose into your lungs (where you want the medicine) than using just an inhaler.   Yes, sometimes you will have to just hit the inhaler but a spacer is something that should be part of the conversation for everyone, especially when you are a caregiver for someone with asthma.  The elderly and children may have a harder time using just an inhaler and getting an effective dose.  They may end up spraying the crap out of their tongue and being turned off by the inhaler.  So try a conversation with your doctor or asthma specialist to discuss adding a spacer.

Here is a link to a great article from the NIH on spacers.   https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC6004521/

 

Here is a spacer similar to the one I use but get the suggestion from your doctor.  I like this one because it has a cap so it keeps the part where I put my mouth nice and clean.   You can also get a case and keep both your inhaler and spacer together which is a great idea for travel (an extra inhaler is also a great idea for travel since people tend to lose them and show up at the pharmacy in a panic)   Remember World War Z when he has to go to the skanky dude who has taken over the pharmacy during the end of the world just to get albuterol.  Don’t be him and get a spare inhaler for your trip.

And if you think you need a case – BE SURE TO MEASURE the length of your spacer.   Some spacers barely fit in the cases and most need the mask removed.  I don’t use a mask with my spacer, I use the mouthpiece but for people who like the mask, it might be a pain to move it on and off just to fit it into the case.   Here is a nice case for travel but it is a bit large but I use mine on trips not daily commutes so I want something that can hold some things and keep them dry.  I once had my suitcase left on a tarmac in Montreal for what must have been hours because all of my clothes in it were quite wet so I really wouldn’t want my medications or pills or any other medical things to get messed up so a nice waterproof case is nice.