Do some meds trigger asthma

[alvariam]

I am on a combination of meds and wonder if any trigger asthma. Meds as follows

amlodopine

Digoxin

Lipitor

Edoxaban

Lansoprazole

I am now on Fostair and Montelukast for asthma control which developed in October 2023. Doctor said I am allergic to grass pollen but never had a problem since early 20`s when I had hay fever, nothing since. I have had several courses of steroids since diagnosis, but symptoms still persist. I was previously on Bisoprolol for Af but swapped to digoxin when in hospital because doctor said it could trigger asthma. Comments appreciated.

[Poobah]

Unfortunately, asthma can rear its head at any age and more often than not, there's no rhyme or reason as to why it suddenly makes an appearance. Same goes for allergies.

You will probably benefit from having a chat with one of the Asthma UK nurses on the helpline, they're extremely knowledgeable and helpful. The helpline is open Mon to Fri, office hours on 0300 222 5800.

My only experience of any of the medications that you have listed is Amlodopine. My GP started me on it to tackle hypertension, but my respiratory consultant had me switched to Losartan Potassium. He explained that asthmatics can experience a respiratory cough when on certain blood pressure meds & I had definitely developed the cough and wheeze. Losartan isn't as effective, but it was a balancing act between asthma control and hypertension control and I was encouraged to lose weight to help both conditions.

All the best.

[KenFine]

I don't know about the meds you mention, but I was put on finasteride in April 2023, to reduce the size of my prostate (I'm 71). A few months later, I started to get unusually breathless on my walks. By November, I had full blown asthma for the first time in my life, and was prescribed an inhaler and steroid pills.

Didn't need the inhaler, as the steroids did the job, but finished the course, and within a short time, was dependent on the inhaler. It became progressively less effective, and the asthma was really bad. I thought I was going to pass out on a 1 mile walk to the supermarket, and back.

I was put on a relvar inhaler, which is a combination of a steroid and a long acting bronchodilator. That was great, and brought the asthma under control. I began to wonder if the asthma had been brought on as a bad reaction to finasteride. There was nothing in the leaflet to suggest it caused breathlessness as a side effect, but when I went on Reddit and did a search for [finasteride asthma], I found numerous posts suggesting that finasteride caused breathlessness. The drug is also prescribed for baldness.

So, I stopped taking the finasteride, and my asthma disappeared. I no longer have to take the asthma medication, and there is now only mild breathlessness after exercise. I suggest you go on to Reddit and do a search for the individual drugs and breathless/asthma. It changed my life big time.