There are widely available and effective treatments for asthma, but poor asthma control is common. This includes overusing short-acting bronchodilators (blue symptom-relieving inhalers), which has been linked to increased risk of hospital admission and death from asthma. Regularly using low-dose anti-inflammatory corticosteroid inhalers (brown preventative inhalers), on the other hand, are vital for asthma control and symptom prevention.
Researchers led by Queen Mary, University of London, evaluated why young adults (20yrs -32yrs) overuse short-acting bronchodilators by interviewing 21 young adults from the same urban general practice. Judging by their number of prescriptions, these adults were classed as either high users (12) or low users (nine).
The study found that the cost of preventative medication put many young adults off, as did the stigma of using an inhaler. These were described as something ‘to hide in a bag.’ When it came to high-users, they often reported poor control of their asthma symptoms, and were more likely to express anger or resentment at their condition. Chris Griffiths, Professor of Primary Care at Queen Mary, who led the research, said, ‘Relying on short-acting bronchodilators – ‘my blue (inhaler) takes a battering’ as one patient put it – is not a safe way to manage asthma and individuals taking this approach are putting their lives and health at risk.’
He added, ‘Our findings suggest a number of possible strategies to support people to manage their condition better. Providing free asthma medication, particularly to those on low incomes, could help boost the numbers using preventive medication. Better education, particularly at the time of diagnosis, could help people accept and adapt to their illness, while reducing stigmatisation might mean people feel more comfortable about using their inhalers in public.’
Head of Policy and Public Affairs at Asthma UK, Emily Humphreys, explained, ‘Over-reliance on reliever asthma medicines instead of preventers puts people at greater risk of a potentially fatal asthma attack, so this study is really important in highlighting some of the reasons behind it. It’s telling that young people felt the costs of prescriptions were such a major barrier to taking the right medicines at the right time.’
She concluded, ‘we’re keen to see the introduction of free prescriptions for long-term conditions so that young people with asthma would no longer face the dilemma of which medicine to buy when they can only afford one. In the meantime, it is absolutely crucial that healthcare professionals explain how medicines work, particularly when younger people are diagnosed with asthma, to ensure that they understand how to manage their condition.’