August 2021 Tip of the Month
Key Points for Inhalation Treatments for COPD Patients
Patients with COPD may experience dyspnea and exacerbations that prompt you to reassess their pharmacological treatment. This month we focus on key considerations for inhalation of drugs in treatment of COPD.
Key Points for Inhalation of Drugs
- • The choice of inhaler device has to be individually tailored and will depend on access, cost, prescriber, and most importantly, patient’s ability and preference.
- • It is essential to provide instructions and to demonstrate the proper inhalation technique when prescribing a device, to ensure that inhaler technique is adequate and re-check at each visit that patients continue to use their inhaler correctly.
Inhaler technique (and adherence to therapy) should be assessed before concluding that the current therapy requires modification.