Symbicort and Baltus

[wheezygirl]

Take both these powdered medications and I'm sure both these are leaving a residue at back of my throat as neither of them seem to work. I don't think it's getting down far enough. In the mornings I have a very coated tongue and have to use a scraper with quite disgusting residue. Ive tried everything medication wise and still have breathing problems when I walk resulting in having to take my Ventolin more than I should. I rinse my mouth and gargle each time I use. This is hampering my life as I love to walk but stopping every time out of breath is dreadful. GP has now given me Amitriptyline to try while awaiting blood tests and ECG. Any advice I want to walk without being able to breathe

[EmmaF91 Community Ambassador]

Are you under a tertiary hospital? (Or even a secondary hospital)?And did you have an issue with spiriva respimat? (Just in case it’s a situ that your body just doesn’t like DPI inhalers).

What tablet meds are you on/have you tried?

If you’re not under a tertiary (specialist) hospital I’d suggest asking for a referral there! They have a lot more drugs available (like the biologics) and will also help spot any comorbidities (like reflux/allergies etc) or mimics (like BPD/VCD etc) and help get them treated also

[ChrissieMons]

Talk to your GP asap to get an aerosol inhaler instead which you can use with a spacer. There are lots of different medications for asthma now, and YouTube films to help you get the best out of them.

[Poobah]

Do you know why you're on dry powder inhalers (DPI) rather than aerosol? I'm assuming that you are sensitive to the aerosol propellant. Inhaler technique is key when taking DPI. But no matter how good your technique is, there will be powder deposits in your mouth and throat. The medication is delivered by inhalation which dislodges it from the carrier, e.g. lactose, which will be left in the mouth and throat. Rinse, brush and gargle with mouthwash should help.

I'm wondering if while you sleep you breath through your mouth rather than your nose? Amitriptyline tends to give you a dry mouth in the morning so this may exacerbate the problem.

Symbicort particles are larger than other DPIs, Fostair being very fine and easier to inhale more deeply into the lungs. Baltus is especially horrible tasting. There are other LAMA inhalers that are equally good. I was on Spiriva (same medication as Baltus) and it worked for about 8 weeks and then it just became ineffective. I did some research and requested Eklira Genuair and it's been very good, for me. It's all trial and error trying to find the best medication for you as an individual.

I use Listerine to rinse & gargle as it works well for me, betterthan just water. Otherwise I find pesky dry powder residue remains. As for inhaler technique, I saw a physio specialist who was really helpful in explaining why my technique wasn't up to scratch. Even after all these years I have to really focus when taking my DPIs in order to use the diaphragm properly and keep my shoulders down.

[Alauralane]

Dear wheezygirl,Sorry to hear you are having such dreadful problems and I am wondering if there is a possbility you are suffering from hyperventilation syndrome or also known as Dysfunctional breathing. Where mouth breathing and dydfunctional breathing patterns become your bodies norm and it throws out your CO2 to oxygen ratios resulting in shortness of breath. The reason I ask this is your GP has prescribed Amitriptyline which is the go to choice to try and treat dysfunctional breathing along with breathing exercises.

I have been suffering from this along with asthma for a long time now and fortunately I can now mostly recognise when I am stressed and or maybe breathing irregularly like when my chronic sinus problems have flared up. I can remember how distressing it is to be treated for asthma and nothing was working on the shortness of breath. The diffculty if you are interested is in the in breath, you feel like you can not get enough air in, especially exercising. If you look up this NHS site it will explain it all better than me. Where as with asthma breathing out is the main issue. If you look up this NHS site it will explain it all better than me. The asthma nurses here were brilliant too when I spoke to them about this. I have since been diagnosed with the condition. All the very best. Alaura.x

[Alauralane in reply to Alauralane]

royalberkshire.nhs.uk/patie....