The national guidelines for Asthma care have changed. They are now directing us to stop prescribing blue inhalers and replace them with a combination inhaler. Introducing this change will save lives; there are still a very large number of preventable asthma deaths across the UK.
The evidence shows that using a single inhaler (the surgery will use the pink Fostair inhaler) for almost all asthma patients greatly reduces the number of exacerbations patients experience, reduces hospital admissions and is a much better for the environment. Inhalers comprise 4% of the NHS Carbon footprint. Halving the number we use, plus using powder inhalers where possible, is on the same environmental scale as closing an international airport!
The combination inhaler contains a long acting ‘reliever’ (equivalent to the blue inhaler) and a small dose of steroid (equivalent to the previous brown inhalers). Inhaling both components at the same time is of great benefit for both short and long term control of asthma symptoms. The benefits are greatest for patients who previously only used a blue inhaler. You use the pink inhaler in the same way as the blue; it acts just as quickly, and the effect lasts a lot longer.
This is a very significant change for asthma patients; the security and reliability of their blue inhaler is deeply engrained over many years. Starting the brown inhaler alongside it if symptoms worsen is a firmly embedded learnt response. This is being replaced with simply increasing the number of pink inhalations. The new Single Inhaler regime does not change the thinking, it just removes the need for two inhalers and heightens the speed of response to the treatment.