General Questions

Will my child grow out of his/her asthma?

Many children will have an improvement in their asthma symptoms as they grow older, but the potential for asthma symptoms to occur remains. Children with severe asthma or those with allergies are less likely to grow out of their asthma but all children can be helped to control their asthma and be as free of symptoms as possible.

I only get asthma in the winter, do I still need to take my preventer inhaler in the summer?

Most people have a number of triggers for their asthma and need to use a preventer inhaler every day, all year round. A few people have truly seasonal asthma and may be able to control their asthma well by using their preventer over the period of time that they have problems. It is important that the preventer is taken every day for that period of time. Any adjustment or variation in the time that medication is taken should only be done on the advice of your doctor.

I feel better when I have used my reliever inhaler, why have I also been given a preventer inhaler?

The blue reliever inhaler works on the muscle spasm in the airways to make you feel better. The preventer is important for managing the over sensitivity of the airways and for settling down the swelling and mucus production in the airways that also occur with asthma. The preventer medication works more slowly and needs to be taken every day

What does a spacer do?

A spacer is a simple plastic device that is used with the aerosol type inhalers. A spacer increases the effectiveness of the inhaler by enabling 50% more medication to reach the small airways. Using a spacer also reduces the amount of medication powder that sticks to the tongue, throat and upper airway thereby reducing some side effects.

More information at www.asthmanz.co.nz

Will oxygen help my COPD?

Oxygen is given to some people with COPD to reduce the strain on their heart. It is not suitable for all people with COPD and can only be prescribed with the approval of a specialist physician. If prescribed, it needs to be used for at least 16 hours per day.