Medication

         I am 20 yrs old and  I have had asthma for about 12 yrs, i am on an inhaler Albuterol but i take it every single night before i go to bed, if i do not take it my breathing becomes irregular and it starts to hurt my chest. Im really sick of it because i go through a 6 month supply of inhalers in 2 or 3 months. is there any other medication out there that will/would work.

[caregiver222]

Your physician should be prescribing you with a plug-in electric inhaler. The albuterol sulfate fills for this are less expensive than the inhalers you carry around.

Wal-Mart has an inexpensive nine dollar inhaler that is every bit as good as the sixty dollar ones.

There are various steroidal options that your physician must prescribe. The best place to get advice is from a nurse practicioner or respiratory therapist in a hospital specializing in asthma control.

With the different steroidal medicals there are good points and bad points. Oral prednose works best, but over the long run may cause many life-threatening problems. For the short term, or to bhring down a flare-up there is no substitute. You need an emergency supply on hand. Get your physician to prescribe the 10 mg tablets and get a tablet splitter. If you have had asthma for 12 years you are undoubtedly familiar with this medication.

To reduce the use of systemic steroids, there are a variety of products that deposit a small dose of powdered steroid on the lungs under various brand names. They all have the potential to cause mouth and throat and lung infections. Have a respiratory therapist show you the correct way to use these and gargle with water two or three times after each use.

I think you need to evaluate your sleeping situation and eliminate allergins in the room, to include rugs, pillows and dust. Get rid of cloth curtains (use blinds) and re-paint the room. Purchase a device to filter and clean the air. Undoubtedly this is a factor in the attacks.