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Inhaler medication administration
Inhaler medication administration

Inhaler medication administration
Alternative Names:
Metered dose inhaler administration; How to give metered dose inhalers

Information:

Metered dose inhalers usually come in 3 pieces:

  • A mouthpiece
  • A cap that goes over the mouthpiece
  • A canister full of medication.
TO USE YOUR METERED DOSE INHALER:
1. Take the cap off the mouthpiece. Check to make sure that small objects have not become lodged in the mouthpiece. People have choked on pennies, pills, or the cap of the inhaler when they tried to use their inhaler.
2. Put the canister in the mouth piece and shake the inhaler.
3. Tilt your head back a little bit and breath out through your mouth.
4. Get the inhaler into position. Try not to aim it at your eyes. There are 3 ways you can do this:
  • A. Put the inhaler an inch or two away from your open mouth.
  • B. Put your lips all the way around the mouthpiece of the inhaler.
  • C. Attach the inhaler to a spacer and put the spacer mouthpiece into your mouth. Put your lips all the way around the spacer.

5. Push down on the canister to release the medication.
6. Just as you press down on the canister, breathe in slowly. If you have trouble breathing at the right time, use a spacer. The spacer will hold the medication until you are ready to breath.
7. Try to hold your breath for 10 seconds. Remove the inhaler or spacer from your mouth. Let your breath out.
8. If you are taking more than 1 puff of medication, wait a minute before using it again. It allows time for the first puff to start working. That way, your second puff will go deeper into your lungs.

TO CHECK YOUR INHALER:
For a new inhaler or one you have not used in awhile, check to make sure it works.
1. Put the canister in the mouthpiece.
2. Take the cap off the mouthpiece and shake the inhaler.
3. Turn the canister to the side so you can see what comes out of the mouth-piece.
4. Press down on the canister. A fine mist should come out of the mouthpiece.

One way to find out if there is still medication in an inhaler is to put the canister in a cup of water. If it sinks it still has medication in it. If it floats, it is empty.

The other way to make sure your inhaler does not run out is to count the doses. If the canister holds 200 puffs and you use 8 puffs a day, you will use up a canister in 25 days. Mark it on your calendar and start a new canister when the 25 days are up.

CHILDREN AND INHALERS:
Young children may not be able to control their breathing enough to use a metered dose inhaler. A spacer can help. It is a chamber with a mouth piece that attaches to the inhaler. Once the medication is released, the spacer holds it until the child takes a breathe and inhales it. Other alternatives are to give the medication by mouth if it comes that way or to give it by a nebulizer.

STORAGE:
Store your metered dose inhaler at room temperature. It may not work well if it is too cold. The contents of the canister are under pressure. So, do not get it too hot or puncture it.

Clean your inhaler the way the package insert tells you to.
Review Date: 8/22/2001
Reviewed By: Elizabeth Hait, M.D., Department of Pediatrics, Rainbow Babies and Children's Hospital, Case Western Reserve University, Cleveland, OH. Review provided by VeriMed Healthcare Network.
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