Most people with asthma still do not use inhalers correctly, according to a study conducted at eight community pharmacies in South Wales.  

The study enrolled 212 patients with an average age of 57.1 years; 53 per cent were female and 35 per cent used more than one type of inhaler.  

Participants used an aerosol inhalation monitor (AIM) to assess canister activation, inspiratory flow rate, breath-hold time and inhalation time. The AIM does not capture every aspect of inhaler technique, such as shaking before use, and has one resistance level for dry powder inhalers (DPIs). 

AIM categorises technique into ‘good’, ‘suboptimal’ or ‘poor’ based on predicted drug deposition in small airways, large airways or oropharynx respectively. According to AIM, 58.3 per cent of people using DPIs had good technique, compared with 47.0 and 18.4 per cent with pressurised metered dose inhalers with and without a spacer respectively. The proportion showing poor technique was 9.7, 24.5 and 58.6 per cent respectively.

“Healthcare professionals urgently need to place more emphasis on assessing and improving inhaler technique in asthma patients,” say the study authors.