How long..

[Blondee15]

How long should you wait while in a flare up to bump up your Advair?
i've been doing worse than usual the past 2 weeks or so. needing albuterol a couple times a day & xopenex. I can already tell it's going to be an awful winter. My scalp is going crazy(allergies) & I wake up everyday breathing out of my mouth b/c i'm so allergic to dust my sinuses close up completely overnite. Which is not good- is causing me teeth problems.
I just feel like I do if I forget a dose of my advair all the time, tight chested, and constantly needing albuterol. I'm on 100/50 but am thinking I need a higher dose?
also, is there any way to prevent the steroid inhalers from rotting your teeth? any other options for medication?
thanks everyone

[jerrie97]

Originally Posted by Blondee15

How long should you wait while in a flare up to bump up your Advair?
i've been doing worse than usual the past 2 weeks or so. needing albuterol a couple times a day & xopenex. I can already tell it's going to be an awful winter. My scalp is going crazy(allergies) & I wake up everyday breathing out of my mouth b/c i'm so allergic to dust my sinuses close up completely overnite. Which is not good- is causing me teeth problems.
I just feel like I do if I forget a dose of my advair all the time, tight chested, and constantly needing albuterol. I'm on 100/50 but am thinking I need a higher dose?
also, is there any way to prevent the steroid inhalers from rotting your teeth? any other options for medication?
thanks everyone

My doctor has me wait until two or three days of being pretty bad to up the prednisone - so I guess that could be the same for your Advair. Call your doctor (allergist?) about it first though. My doctor says that the third day of being bad, he wants me to make an appointment also.

This winter, to avoid problems, your doc may want you on Advair 250 or even 500. Something else he may want you to do is use Xopenex when you can (when you're at home, that is. I realize it's impossible to do other places without a portable neb) instead of the albuterol during a flare-up. The good news about Xopenex is that it's about to be released in inhaler form by 3m!

Another thing you could look into is Xolair. Mention it to your allergist at your next appointment (don't forget to tell him how bad you get in the winter!) It requires some bloodwork for IgE levels, but it's well worth it, in my opinion. The only real downside to it is that it takes a few months to take any effect.

I'm not sure of any ways to prevent tooth problems from inhalers. Maybe brushing your teeth and gargling with Listerine after an Advair dose could help?

Take care.

[reader1]

If it were me, I would already have bumped up the advair. The inhalers are unlikely to effect your mouth and teeth as long as you rinse after each use.

It sounds like you need to go in and talk to your allergist or pulmonologist.

Good luck.

[wrin]

The steroids won't rot your teeth. Rinse your mouth anyway, it prevents thrush.

As for the Xolair, consider first whether your insurance would cover it, as it costs something to the tune of $20,000 a year to administer. It also is only approved for people with absolutely wack-o insane-o IgE levels. Are antileukotrienes and antihistamines doing it for you? Is there another allergy med you can take? I think an intervention that runs more than ten Gs should probably be considered at the discretion of a pulmonary specialist.

Also, Advair, because of the fixed dosing of the serevent, isn't one fo those drugs you can just bump up on your own. Going back into the office of whoever prescribed it to you to get your prescription adjusted is what's necessary to have your dosage upped, if that's the appropriate thing to do.