World Asthma Day Highlights Need for Education on Inhaler Use

Research released on World Asthma Day (today, May 6) shows most Australian asthmatics are using their inhalers incorrectly, damaging their health and hitting the country in the hip pocket.
A study by the Woolcock Institute of Medical Research in Sydney has revealed that while most people think they're using their medication effectively, they are actually making multiple errors.
Specialists warn the finding is worrying considering many of Australia's two million asthmatics use an inhaler to manage their condition.
"That is an awful lot of people who are potentially endangering their health as well as wasting both their medication and their money," says Woolcock Institute inhaler specialist Associate Professor Sinthia Bosnic-Anticevich.
The cross-sectional study of 200 patients found that 73 per cent perceive their inhaler technique to be good or excellent.
Yet when checked, all 200 patients performed at least two errors during use, like holding it inaccurately, inhaling at the wrong time, or using old, broken or empty devices. And 72 per cent performed at least five errors.
Just five per cent had had their inhaler technique checked by a doctor or specialist in the last 12 months.
Other Woolcock Institute research has indicated 90 per cent of Australians with the chronic lung disease use inhalers incorrectly, considerably more than the 30-80 per cent observed internationally.
"Used correctly, inhalers have the power to effectively manage even persistent asthma but so many people aren't doing so," Associate Professor Bosnic-Anticevich says.
"In many cases there's been decades of incorrect use, simply because the person has never been shown how to use it properly."
The research centre is using World Asthma Day to send a message to the medical fraternity stressing the importance of teaching patients how to use their medication. It asks doctors and pharmacists to offer a few minutes of simple inhaler technique education to each patient.
"Talking about it is not enough," Associate Professor Bosnic-Anticevich says. "Physical demonstrations are needed with a placebo inhaler to ensure that they really understand. Without it, a patient will not be getting the full benefit of their medications and this is extremely important with regards to controlling their asthma."
Studies have shown that improving inhaler technique can improve asthma control and reduce symptoms. A report prepared for the National Asthma Council in 2008 investigated the problem, revealing many people, particularly those who were elderly, sick, cognitively-impaired and poorly educated, were using their devices incorrectly.
Common issues include holding it on the wrong angle, inhaling too early or too late or using an inhaler that is either empty or faulty.
Associate Professor Helen Reddel, a Woolcock Institute respiratory physician, says inhaler use has not improved in the past five years. The problem has costs for both the individual and the health system, she says.
"Patients have to buy medication more frequently and the government foots a huge medical bill to subsidise these medications which are not being used correctly."
Associate Professor Reddel is involved in Global Initiative for Asthma (GINA), an international organisation which uses May 6 to release its new global asthma strategy. The report, Global Strategy for Asthma Management and Prevention, is the first major strategy revision in eight years. It highlights the importance of correct inhaler technique, and urges health professionals to give it greater attention.
The new Australian Asthma Handbook launched in March also places greater emphasis on inhaler technique than ever before, to help tackle the problem