Asthma Medicines

Beta 2 Agonists/ Bronchodilators

In this class are drugs such as Ventolin, Berotec, Airomir, Bronchomat and many others. They can be given by any of the ways discussed under 'Asthma Inhalers and More' but most commonly they are given by inhalers. These drugs work by signaling the muscles of the airways to relax allowing them to open and ease air flow. They are the most powerful of the asthma drugs in an acute attack. A major disadvantage in long term use is that the airways start to ignore them so you have to take more and more for the same effect. Some of the most complained of side effects from these drugs are hand tremors and a racing heart, more common in the tablet and syrup forms as more of the drug reaches the rest of the body.

These drugs are usually given as two inhalations three times a day as needed. In young children who cannot use inhalers, syrups are used varying from a quarter teaspoon in babies to two teaspoons in children.

Anti-inflammatory Steroids

The steroids used in asthma aren't the same ones body builders use to get big. That is one type of the family of steroids but we're talking about another. These preparations work by 'sedating' your airways, making them less likely to react violently to irritants. They work slowly so are best at preventing an attack but not good at stopping a wheeze already present. And in order to work, you need to take them once every 12 hours. A big mistake many asthmatics make is waiting until they wheeze, trying them, then saying they don't work. It won't work at that point, but if you took it before the wheeze you may never have wheezed at all.

Taken as an inhaler you can expect no major side effects as the doses reaching the rest of your body are minuscule. However, if used regularly as an inhaler, the back of your throat may become sore and your voice hoarse. This can easily be prevented by drinking a little water after each inhaler use to wash the medicine off these areas. Taken as tablets or syrups for many weeks continuously can lead to a host of problems such as weight gain (bloat rather than muscle), susceptibility to infection, and slowed bone growth in children. For this reason, tablet or syrup forms of steroids are not used for longer than a week or two during which time very little side effects can be expected, even in children.

Steroids inhalers are given as two puffs twice a day every day. As tablets they are given as 1 milligram per kilogram of bodyweight (including children) up to a maximum of 60 mg in adults for a week. Used for less than 10 days there's little risk of complications.

Mast Cell Stabilizers

In allergies, one of the main chemical culprits for making you feel bleary eyed and runny, is Histamine. Medicines like Intal stop the cells that release this chemical from being able to do so.

Antihistamines

These drugs are your cold and flu relievers. They work by blocking the histamine signal that causes sneezing, runny nose, cough and itching. As many asthma attacks are closely related to allergies to dust etc. these medicines are commonly used with steroids and bronchodilators to bring an attack under control. They are usually given as syrups in hospitals but as tablets in the community. Examples are Actifed, Histal, and Claritine. The main complaint with this drug class is sleepiness.

Coffee and Tea

The active ingredient which makes you feel good in tea is called 'Theophylline' and it's chemically related to caffeine in coffee. Both chemicals have a positive effect on dilating air passages in asthma. In severe asthmatics theophylline is prescribed as tablet preparations such as Theodur or given as an injection in hospitals. They are quite effective but come with a price tag of anxiety, tremor, difficulty sleeping, and poor appetite. They are therefore only used in persons not given enough relief with inhalers and as evening doses in persons who frequently wake at night with asthma.

Thank You for Using our Site Doctor Secrets!

Last Modified: