Reliever lasting only a short time

I went to my friends house last weekend for a sleepover. Her parents smoke, she has several cats and the place is really dusty. I found myself coughing and gasping alot. I used my reliever (ventolin) but it only lasted for just under four hours, so i had to take it more than the recommended number of times. In this situation, would a symptom controller be used e.g serevent? Just wondering if i should discuss this for future situations which may be similar.

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Hi Bobby.

Sorry you are finding it hard at the moment. I have Serevent & its supposed to be a bit like Ventolin only takes longer to start working but when it does it lasts for up to 12hrs - correct me if I am wrong anyone but thats the way I understand it. I was given it when my Ventolin stopped giving me long-lasting relief (it was lasting a couple of hours) & I was generally tired from putting a lot of effort into breathing even though my pf was up - wierd! so its defo worth a chat with your dr - I find it helps me a whole lot this Serevent & I can definately tell when I accidentally miss a dose! Hope you feel better soon.

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Hi Bobby,

Salbutamol usually does only last 4 - 6 hours, but if you are finding that you are having a lot of symptoms or that you are using more than 10 - 12 puffs of salbutamol a day, this would indicate that your asthma is not adequately controlled. If this is the case then it is certainly worth visiting your GP and discussing more treatment. This could include increasing the dose of your inhaled steroids, if you're on them, or adding in salmeterol (Serevent).

Hope this helps

Em H

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Hi!

I used to take Ventolin but my body actually got ""used"" to it since i used it so much, so my doctor let me switch inhalers, and that worked very well for me.

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Haagendaz, What kind of inhalers did you switch to?

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I know if I go anywhere with cats that I have to take an anti-histamine half an hour before I get there. I just use over the counter ones, which usually seem to be strong enough for me (they're one a day ones, so I take another when I wake up if I'm staying over), but do talk to your doctor first, to see what is best for you and to check that you get something suitable to take alongside whatever meds you are on.

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i take maxair now, but i moved countries, i now live in england, and i dont think they have it here. I need refills soon!