My son's asthma inhalers

[Ch3838]

Hi, I took My son Ethan to the doctors yesterday to get his inhalers for when he goes back to school, he was using Ivax easi breath and red symbicort inhalers and his asthma was fine, he has now been kept on symbicort but also give airomir autohaler as his releiver and seretide and fixotide as his other 2 preventer. But why does he need that many preventer doesn't he just need a releiver and preventer, or does he need to take them at certain times, the doctor hasn't really explained this.

My other 2 some jack (15) uses ventolin as his relevier and seretide evohaler as his preventer. And my other son Jacob (13) uses airomir autohaler and fixotide. And there asthma is fine so I don't get why my other son needs all them preventers,

Could the doctor of made a mistake?

Thank you

[risabel59]

You wouldn't normally be using both Seretide and Symbicort. So I think there must be some kind of error. I think you need to clarify this with your doctor asap. It is possible that you could be given flixotide as an additional add on steroid inhaler, but an add on for Symbicort would normally be budesonide. As that is the steroid component of Symbicort. Flixotide is the steroid component of Seretide.

You could also call the Asthma U.K. Help line on Monday, if you can't get an appointment or phone call with the doctor.

R

[Ch3838 in reply to risabel59]

Yes think that may be possible.

Thank you

[Minushabens]

It's not unheard of for people to have various inhalers, but as you're describing someone who appears to be stable, then there's no obvious reason why. And the combination seems a little odd to say the least.

At the very least, an explanation for the change might have been nice!

I'd be slightly tempted to maybe ring 111 & see if a doctor can say if that sounds right; if he has erred, you need to find out really.

[Ch3838]

Will do

[Ch3838]

I took ethan to a 24 hour pharmacy today As be sounded quite wheezy and was coughing with tight chest when he woke up this morning, he took two puffs of his new releiver but his breathing didn't really calm down as was told before he would need a preventer to actually calm his breathing down when it gets really bad, but I told him not to use any of them, the symbicort, serevent or fixotide, until we found out which one one needs, so took him to the pharmacy where they said to just use the symbicort as he will be used to it and to take him back to see the doctor tomorrow.

They said that with it been a new releiver it may not act well with the symbicort preventer, and he may need something stronger like fostair or serevent and flixotide to work with his new releiver, so they just said to use the preventer and wait until i can take him to the doctor and luckily the preventer and managed to calm his breathing down, he's not breathing as fast now and he is coughing less and the wheeze is really quiet, and he said he doesn't have tightness in his chest now. But said be feels like he needs something stronger.

[Ch3838]

Hi, I took Ethan to the doctors today and luckily got to see the doctor who prescribed the inhalers.

After the doctor listened to his chest he said ethan had a wheeze what could only be heared with a stethoscope and his breathing was very shallow and that he was breathing to fast.

The doctor also realised his mistake of prescribing symbicort and serevent and flixotide and said that he should only of had serevent and flixotide.

Ethan has now been prescribed the serevent and fixotide as his preventers and has been given ventolin, and the aero chamber spacer with the mouthpiece as he used to struggle with the mask and whilst at the doctors he was given two puffs of the inhalers to see of they helped and he still couldnt use the mask, luckily (the inhalers worked),

the doctor decided it would be better for him to use these inhalers so he can use the spacer as the doctor said thats why his asthma may not be as controlled as it should be as he can't get all the medicines into his lungs and that the airomir autohaler and symbicort may be better for him to use when he is older.

After two puffs of each inhaler at the doctors his breathing calmed quite quick and the doctor said that he could be on these for a while as they helped alot, but if at any point his breathing gets worse then he will be put on fostair or seretide metered dose inhaler Or accuhaler depending on which one he finds easier to use.

I am so glad that his asthma is getting better and he has been given a peak flow to use at home so he can always check up on how controlled his asthma is.

Thank you to all who have commented and given me advice, I am just so glad to see my boy finding it easier to breath again.

Thank you