Asthma sufferers..

[Partial Qualifier]

Do you get physically addicted to Albuterol?

It started about 7 years ago when I tore something in my ribcage and couldn't breathe normally, the doctor gave me an albuterol inhaler because it would "make breathing easier". Ever since then I've had an "asthma problem".

Every doctor I've been to since then says no, I should not get physically addicted to it.

:confused: :confused: :confused:

I will only use it in a dire emergency, like last week after I dummied up and went for a long bike ride in the cold. Dammit.

As soon as it wears off - the asthmatic condition is back, stronger than before. In order to breathe, I have to use the inhaler every 3-4 hours. it's ridiculous.

Twice I've had to wean myself off Albuterol with Singulair and Advent. I'll begin that process again this morning after I see the doctor but this time I will stay with the singulair forevar.

It's like the sh*t helps for a few hours, but very quickly turns a bad wheeze into a full-blown, worst-case asthma scenario. Does albuterol do anybody else this way??

[OUDoc]

Again, it shouldn't.

Have you ever had spirometry (pulmonary function testing) done? It measures how much air your lungs can move, among other things. It's easy and would likely tell you what you need to know.

[Partial Qualifier]

no I haven't, but I'm switching to a new primary care doc and seeing him in about 30 minutes. I will bring this up if he doesn't. Thank you.

[soonerbrat]

i was recently diagnosed with asthma...i was having some allergy issues. I don't use the inhaler much though. my physiology professor asked me if I had asthma when I was in college because of some experiment we were doing with a spirometer, but I had never had problems until recently. I think the problems are pretty much solved now though, so I stopped using the advair.

[LilSooner]

My doc just put me on advair because I am having some issues breathing. In high school I was diagnosed with exercised induced asthma which sucked because I would easily work out 3-4 hours a day.

Now I don't have that issue and I still can't breath. It feels like an elephant sitting on my chest.

But I took albuterol in high school and it never bothered me, now it makes me freak out.

[FirstandGoal]

Let me start by stating that I am a pharmacist.

I realize I am a bit too late for this seeing as you have already gone to your appointment, but I have to chime in with the it-is-not-addicting crowd.

OUDoc is right, you really need a PFT to see where you are and those tests really can tell you a lot about your condition.

Its fine to be on Singulair on a regular basis, but if you start noticing that you get a lot of ear infections, that might not be the best drug of choice for you.

Advair is a great preventative medication, and one of the components in it is very similar to albuterol. The biggest drawback to this medication is that it must be used twice daily every single day. Also, anyone who is on advair should have an albuterol inhaler handy for immediate breathing issues just in case.

Okay, now I gotta go to work and get paid to counsel people ;)

[proud gonzo]

you really should to go an asthma specialist, not just your regular doctor.

[soonerbrat]

Let me start by stating that I am a pharmacist.

I realize I am a bit too late for this seeing as you have already gone to your appointment, but I have to chime in with the it-is-not-addicting crowd.

OUDoc is right, you really need a PFT to see where you are and those tests really can tell you a lot about your condition.

Its fine to be on Singulair on a regular basis, but if you start noticing that you get a lot of ear infections, that might not be the best drug of choice for you.

Advair is a great preventative medication, and one of the components in it is very similar to albuterol. The biggest drawback to this medication is that it must be used twice daily every single day. Also, anyone who is on advair should have an albuterol inhaler handy for immediate breathing issues just in case.

Okay, now I gotta go to work and get paid to counsel people ;)


you forgot to mention that you should rinse your mouth out every time you use advair because you might be prone to get thrush if you don't.
yuck.

[OUDoc]

you really should to go an asthma specialist, not just your regular doctor.
I have patients like you......

[Sooner Born Sooner Bred]

I was diagnosed as being asthma free when I was about 7. I never had an inhaler, we just controlled it with some kind of syrupy medicine.

Sometimes I wonder if I don't still have just a touch of asthma. If I work out really hard, my throat feels really cold and sore and it takes a few minutes to fully catch my breath again.

[proud gonzo]

I have patients like you......whaddya mean?

[Norman Sooner]

I have asthma, but the only time i use and inhaler is when the weather changes..I have no idea why that is, but it never fails. Also i found that you can buy your inhalers in mexico for 7 bucks, i stock up every time im down there. At the rate i use mine, i have enough to last me til im 80. I have also never thought that it was addicting either

[OUDoc]

whaddya mean?
He doesn't know whether or not he has asthma. He can hold off on the specialist for now. ;)

[proud gonzo]

He doesn't know whether or not he has asthma. He can hold off on the specialist for now. ;)that's what i mean--if he's been messing with it for this long, IMO he ought to just go to a specialist and find out pretty quick if he does or doesn't have asthma.

I'm sure you're competent, but i've heard enough very stupid things about allergies and asthma from doctors before to realize that's not always the case ;)

[OCUDad]

I'm sure you're competentPretty huge assumption about anyone who posts on the SO, isn't it? :D

[OUDoc]

Pretty huge assumption about anyone who posts on the SO, isn't it? :D
I'll give you asthma.

http://movies.infinitecoolness.com/23/caddyshack10b.jpg

[Sooner Born Sooner Bred]

I've heard the lady patients always get asthma after they visit OUDoc's office. :confused:

[GottaHavePride]

Advair is a great preventative medication, and one of the components in it is very similar to albuterol. The biggest drawback to this medication is that it must be used twice daily every single day. Also, anyone who is on advair should have an albuterol inhaler handy for immediate breathing issues just in case.

This is not always the case. I'll speak here as someone who has had asthma for a very long time and has ben seeing a VERY respected allergy specialist since I was, oh, 8.

Advair is a long-term medication that tries to control your reaction so you don't need the albuterol (or pirbuterol) inhaler as much. Or at all.

When I was a kid, I needed the albuterol inhaler twice a day, every day. I was on a pretty crazy mix of the albuterol, some kind of pills for longer-term control, oh and theophylline pills for when it got REALLY crazy.

Anyway, when Advair came out he decided to shift me to that. I started on the mid-strength (250/50) twice a day, every day. After a few years I moved down to the weakest version (125/50) twice a day. A few years after that, I switched to the 125/50 once a day. Then I shifted to only using the 125/50 once a day for a week at a time when I was having problems.

Right now, I have not used Advair or any form of fast-acting inhaler in about 2 years. Haven't had an asthma problem in closer to 5 years.

[PrideTrombone]

Sucks to your ***-mar!!!

[RacerX]

Advair + singulair = no use of albuterol for RacerX. Even when I jogged this morning and it was 26 degrees.

I used to use albuterol multiple times a day. Then I lucked out and my PCP retired. New doc got me on new meds.

[Sooner Born Sooner Bred]

The suspense is killing me! Is PQ addicted to this stuff or not?

[OUDoc]

http://www1.istockphoto.com/file_thumbview_approve/2902856/2/istockphoto_2902856_drug_junkie.jpg

[Partial Qualifier]

Right now, I have not used Advair or any form of fast-acting inhaler in about 2 years. Haven't had an asthma problem in closer to 5 years.

so GHP, you've weaned yourself off the medication and now it seems your asthma is gone? You battled asthma for a long time, do you now think the meds were a contributing factor?

Doc, the new doctor prescribed advair and wants to see me in a month. I mentioned the singulair which was helpful last time, but had some problem with Singulair, said he'd rather not put me on that if possible. He also gave me some prednizone for the short-term since the albuterol stopped working. I mentioned the spirometry and he said we might do that when I go back in a month. I told him the history of my asthmatic conditions.. he probably thinks I'm an albuterol conspiracy theorist. So he's treating me for asthma but I guess we'll know more in a month.

What else, Doc, can cause asthmatic symptoms besides asthma? The thing is, I never had asthma before I used that albuterol inhaler 7-8 years ago. I stopped using albuterol, no more asthma. The only times my 'asthma' has come back were the times I used someone else's inhaler because I was wheezy.. I could breathe, just real raspy and wheezy (never will I do that again)

[OUDoc]

That's weird. Some drugs give you a "rebound" of the condition they are treating (some BP meds, nasal decongestants, etc) when they wear off, maybe albuterol does this to you. I've never seen that before though.

I agree, Advair is a better choice than Singulair. He must be a brilliant doctor. :)

[soonerbrat]

yeah, what else causes asthma-like symptoms? because I've never had a problem with asthma until a couple weeks ago. i think i'm better now too.



except for the spirometer experiment, of course.

[Partial Qualifier]

That's weird. Some drugs give you a "rebound" of the condition they are treating (some BP meds, nasal decongestants, etc) when they wear off, maybe albuterol does this to you. I've never seen that before though.

I agree, Advair is a better choice than Singulair. He must be a brilliant doctor. :)

To me Doc, it's obvious Albuterol has that affect. Every doctor I've seen is all "NEWP... you just have asthma...." It would be my luck that I'm the only hooman in the world who has this reaction. It's just like the old Afrin nasal spray.. if you used that stuff, when it wore off your nose was way worse than it was to begin with.

Oh well, everything's fine now. The steroids are kinda wierd, I have an orange-ish glow about me and feel fine even though I only slept for a few hours last night.

[soonerbrat]

albuterol makes my heart beat really fast. i don't like it.

[Sooner Born Sooner Bred]

I have an orange-ish glow about me http://mikegundyismadatyou.com/gundycard/images/image-0fd5d068f590544c34137d5515c99731-inaccurate.jpg

[Partial Qualifier]

...not THAT orange!

[OUDoc]

albuterol makes my heart beat really fast. i don't like it.
So does Howzit. What's your point?

[FirstandGoal]

Albuterol will make anyone's heart beat faster. That's just an unfortunate side effect of the drug. I still maintain that you cannot get a rebound effect from albuterol until I see clinical trials where it happened.

[GottaHavePride]

so GHP, you've weaned yourself off the medication and now it seems your asthma is gone? You battled asthma for a long time, do you now think the meds were a contributing factor?
Exactly the opposite. I believe the meds got it under control to a point where, as we eased off the meds over a period of years, the condition stayed controlled. Asthma was the primary manifestation of my allergies. Almost anything could set my asthma off - pollen, dust, mold, physical exertion, animal dander (cats especially), illness, even drastic changes in temperature (cold weather particularly).

It really sucked when the first thing to happen to you when you get pneumonia or bronchitis is that it sets your asthma off.


What else, Doc, can cause asthmatic symptoms besides asthma? The thing is, I never had asthma before I used that albuterol inhaler 7-8 years ago. I stopped using albuterol, no more asthma. The only times my 'asthma' has come back were the times I used someone else's inhaler because I was wheezy.. I could breathe, just real raspy and wheezy (never will I do that again)
I think the issue there is that using the albuterol is a temporary fix that will let you breathe again, but it doesn't remove whatever irritating factor is setting the asthma off. If it happens again that you're having a bit of an asthmatic spell, combine the inhaler with some antihistamines and see if that helps.

[GottaHavePride]

Albuterol will make anyone's heart beat faster. That's just an unfortunate side effect of the drug. I still maintain that you cannot get a rebound effect from albuterol until I see clinical trials where it happened.

Did you ever take theophylline? Man, seriously... The first time I took that stuff it was at night right before bed, and that's probably the closest I'll ever come to tweaking out on speed. I sat in bed for the next 6 hours with my eyes wide open with kind of super-caffeine jitters. I could breathe, though.

[FirstandGoal]

Did you ever take theophylline? Man, seriously... The first time I took that stuff it was at night right before bed, and that's probably the closest I'll ever come to tweaking out on speed. I sat in bed for the next 6 hours with my eyes wide open with kind of super-caffeine jitters. I could breathe, though.

funny you should mention that because theophylline is chemically very close to caffeine. Thank God modern medicine has advanced us past theophylline.

[GottaHavePride]

funny you should mention that because theophylline is chemically very close to caffeine. Thank God modern medicine has advanced us past theophylline.

Heh. That must have been over 15 years ago. Dang.

[OKC-SLC]

I hate patients like you......
fixed.

[OKC-SLC]

PQ--I'm not sure if you have asthma or not. But I think upper and lower endoscopy and a liver biopsy will help determine this. Especially if you have good insurance.





;)