ventolin cut backs

[Syncs]

I was very shocked to hear doctors are restricting ventolin ( salbutamol) to some patients, at the end of the day if you have an attack ventolin can save people, it’s easy to say you should be ok having your preventative meds so you wont need much reliever but that wont keep you alive when you need it. If you’ve experienced this yourself you will know, if you haven’t you have no understanding, this opinion must be challenged or people will die.

[Yumz199725]

This is awful! I have seen two posts about this now including yours. I really hope that they decide to change this especially before the cold weather comes that's when I notice I need my blue more.

[Patk1]

Exactly x

[Mellywelly]

My thoughts exactly. It's disgusting 🫣

[Pwkav1]

Ive had blue inhalers all my life hope they dont take mine away think i would start panicking.

[Daisytime]

Hi Syncs, I have had this argument with my doctor for months now. He took away ventolin and replaced it with Salamol which I could not use/inhale. (I just choked on it) so he replaced it with Bricanul which I can use but is slower to work and you have to rinse mouth out after using to prevent oral thrush. Not much use if you are out shopping! In the end I purchased Ventolin from online pharmacy so I have it to hand in an emergency and when out. I am just hoping they dont stop producing it! This has been done to cut down NHS carbon footprint apparently!

[Jansy16 in reply to Daisytime]

My Dr did the same to me, I found the Salamol didn't agree with me & asked to be put back on Ventolin, thankfully they did. Salamol is CFC so better for the environment that's why they changed our inhalers apparently.

[Izb1 in reply to Jansy16]

My Ventolin says it contains a cfc free propellant so I think this is just a load of rubbish and the medical profession are using it to cut back the cost of inhalers and I hardly think our inhalers are damaging the environment, sorry but it makes me mad that they are using this x

[Syncs in reply to Daisytime]

Thanks Daisytime, this is the point I’m trying to make, if peoples preventer meds are working, all well and good but if they aren’t then that ventolin is a saviour, you know that and other people who’ve experienced it know that, but your doctor hasn’t experienced it so he or she has taken it away from you and that’s wrong, yes they should review your preventers but not take away your ventolin, you’ve done the only thing you can by buying one yourself, hope you find a more understanding GP.

[bwp91]

I may be wrong but my understanding is that restricting ventolin isn’t about saving money. Doctors are concerned that some patients are using their blue inhaler far too much and it can well be a sign that their asthma is out of control. So really your doc should be discussing your health, perhaps doing more tests etc. In some cases overuse of ventolin means the patient has such severe asthma that biologics are considered. If so, that’ll cost far more ! Or there could be other reasons your brown inhaler isn’t enough. Little Pom is right - if you can’t get this sorted at you surgery, ask for referral to a specialist. B

[Tdster43 in reply to bwp91]

This is absolutely the reason. People using a lot of blue inhaler may have need to have their asthma medication boosted (or indeed COPD management adapted). Salbutamol is helpful of course but someone using 10-12 / year or more is likely to have better options. Hence high use is a signal things might need tweaked.

[Izb1 in reply to Tdster43]

I suppose that depends on whether you have asthma or not. I have bronchiectasis so dont have the brown inhaler and because my condition isnt managed by anybody I have to manage myself. I use Ventolin to clear the over production of mucus , somedays I dont use it all but others its a couple of times a day. My gp surgery is useless and really dont know anything about bronch and have to say neither did the respiratory consultant I had, who discharged me saying there was nothing more they could do for me. I am finally waiting an appointment to see the bronch specialist/clinic at Wythenshawe to see if I can get somebody to manage my health x

[Tdster43 in reply to Izb1]

Good luck! Great team at Wythenshawe and good access to physio there which likely will help a lot once you find a technique you can use.

Hope its better than salbutamol!

I often think of airway mucus like the gunk we get on our teeth; physical treatments are whats needed first (and often a bit gross not to brush our teeth for days akin to what happens if chest clearance not done regularly too)

MANY THANKS to the patients who helped with the CLEAR trial which has all patients in the study and waiting last visit to then unlock the answer; does carbocisteine tablets and/or hypertonic saline reduce bronchiectasis flare ups?

These medications are already used in the NHS and might be used even in the absence of flare ups to help with symptoms

You may wish to ask about these but likely the 1st step will be seeing a physio and finding the right technique and/or device to help

some bronchiectasis links

asthmaandlung.org.uk/condit...

This one is good to checklist your care / prompt asking about things:

europeanlunginfo.org/assets...

Good luck! There are quite a few trials in bronchiectasis coming v soon too!

[Izb1 in reply to Tdster43]

Thank you for your reply and info. My biggest problem is the amount of mucus I make in my sinus's, I dont have a problem clearing it (exept in the mornings) and dont need carbocisteine as its runny enough. I use boxes of tissues and feel I must have shares in Kleenex, i have to keep my nose clear if i dont it goes onto my chest. I seem to spend all day either blowing my nose or coughing it off my chest. I use all the usual washes and gels and the op didnt stop this. I will be so glad when I can talk to a doctor that really understands the problems with this x

[Tdster43 in reply to Izb1]

derbyshiremedicinesmanageme...

might help? ENT referral worth asking if no better.... for those of you with bronchiectasis or COPD REALLY interested to know what happened to our runny nose symptoms if started on azithromycin as its often an initial outpouring then suddenly much better??

[Izb1 in reply to Tdster43]

Already been down that road x

[Daisytime in reply to bwp91]

I only use two maybe three ventolin at the most a year. I was diagnosed with emphysema 11 years ago and have not been seen by a specialist since.

[Sara_2611]

Yes I agree. It gets on my nerves when I'm in hospital that the nurses persistently call my medication by their chemical names instead of their brand names. I don't recognise them unless they say the brand names & it looks bad on me as I tell them I can self Medicate & it looks like I cant

[katieoxo60]

Sorry after reading the post here , I feel I must comment. Salbutomol/ventalin does have a maximum dosage i.e 2 puffs four times a day above that you are risking all sorts of other conditions. I take it for the control of my cough but have been on the same dose now for around twenty five years I still have a cough it only helps to control it by opening my airways. Each patient is supposed to be assessed by their own GP surgery and referred to specialist if problem arises or existing condition gets worse. We are all different and react different to certain drugs so it does have to be whats best for the individual which requires good management by yourself and the practice staff including the GP or specialists. Not all things we do to keep us well are done by a medic. So please look carefully at what makes you feel the wellest and never over do things as that can make you ill too. Keeping a diary can sometimes help pinpoint what makes you feel iller be that an inhaler,pill, or just over doing your daily activities. It could even be certain foods if you eat too many of them. Hope this helps you. Enjoy your weekend.