Expert: Only 30% of asthma patients follow recommendations and take medications regularly

Asthma requires regular intake of appropriate medication. Unfortunately, Poles have a problem with this. It is estimated that only about 30% of patients follow the recommendations and take their medication regularly, says Dr. Piotr Dąbrowiecki. The rest of the patients stop taking them as soon as they feel better.

Asthma is a chronic inflammatory disease of the respiratory system and requires constant control with appropriately taken medications. Failure to follow doctors' recommendations is a serious mistake - warns the specialist, who is the chairman of the Polish Federation of Associations of Patients with Asthma, Allergies and COPD, and suffers from asthma himself. "Asthma does not disappear, it only goes into remission, and the lack of treatment leads to the return of symptoms, often with greater intensity" - he notes.

For this reason, World Asthma Day, which falls on May 6, is celebrated this year under the slogan "Inhalation therapy available to all". Because the paradox is that although such treatment is widely available in developed countries, it is not fully utilized. The problem is both the discontinuation of medications by patients as soon as the symptoms subside, as well as their improper use using inhalers.

"Even if the patient has a well-selected medication, the incorrect technique of taking it means that the treatment does not work," reminds Dr. Dąbrowiecki from the Department of Internal Medicine, Infectious Diseases and Allergology of the Military Institute of Medicine in Warsaw.

pMDI (pressurized) and DPI (powder) inhalers have a completely different technique of use. The patient must know how to use them correctly – they must empty their lungs before inhaling, inhale the medicine properly and hold their breath after application. "Failure to exhale before inhaling or failure to hold their breath can reduce the effectiveness of the therapy by half," the specialist notes.

Doctors can and should assess this, but only about 5% of them check the strength of the patient's inhalation. "And this is absolutely fundamental," says Dr. Hab. Dąbrowiecki. "Asthma cannot be treated well without assessing whether the patient is able to use a specific type of inhaler at all. That is why I encourage patients: bring your inhalers to every visit and show the doctor how you use them. Checking the inhalation technique should be standard."

To help doctors, pharmacists were involved in the patient education process as part of the "New Medicine" procedure, available in pharmacies implementing pharmaceutical care. Modern technologies are also offered to facilitate the use of inhaled drugs. Inhalers are available that are less sensitive to user errors - regardless of position or shaking, they deliver an accurate dose of the drug. Deposition, or the settling of the drug in the respiratory tract after inhalation, reaches up to 50 percent.

The chairman of the Polish Federation of Asthma, Allergy and COPD Associations assures that every patient can be fitted with an appropriate inhaler – effective and easy to use. All you need to do is take the time to educate yourself. The Polish Society of Allergology https://dlapacjentow.pta.med.pl/ or the Federation of Patients https://www.astma-alergia-pochp.pl/ offer instructional videos, guides and training. It is also worth visiting https://totylkoastma.pl/. I ​​encourage you to use these sites, because an educated patient is a well-treated patient.

The Global Initiative for Asthma (GINA) recommends a flexible approach – if a patient wants to take medication only when needed, they should have access to combination preparations – a steroid and a symptomatic medication in one inhaler.

"Asthma can currently be controlled very well," assures Dr. Piotr Dąbrowiecki. "Chronic and emergency treatment, triple therapy, and biological treatment offer enormous opportunities. However, to use them, you need to understand the disease, follow the recommendations, and not be afraid to ask your doctor about anything that raises doubts. Let's also remember about education - the more we know about our disease, the better and longer we live." (PAP)

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