Wrongly prescribed asthma meds for GERD?

[Vanessa74]

Hi!

I have read many posts on this board about people who had GERD and difficulty breathing that were wrongly prescribed 'asthma medications (inhaled steroids, rescue inhalers, etc.) to treat the breathing difficulties - and that these treatments did not help.

Can anyone please tell me if the asthma medications made them worse? Or if they gave them any worse of different symptoms?

Also - did the rescue inhalers ever work for anyone when the breathing was really bad?

Thank you so much!

[celticdrag0n]

When I was a kid I was wrongly diagnosed with asthma...when I had GERD... (the asthma didnt show up til later years, lol). I was given inhalers...
The reason this happens, in my understanding, is because people with GERD commonly aspirate (inhale) acid, thus causing coughing and asthma-like symptoms. In one manner of thinking you could say it causes a type of asthma...where an outside irritant causes asthma.

The asthma meds never made the reflux worse. It just did nothing for the reflux...thus leaving my lungs still irritated from aspiration.

[Vanessa74]

Hi Celtic,

Thank you for responding. So know you have GERD and asthma huh Are they both well controlled with medication?

Thanks again!!

[flowergirl2day]

Hi Vanessa,

My breathing problems were SEVERE. The tests showed decreased lung function by more than 20% and I was given asthma meds to treat the "asthma". Nothing happened after a month - no improvement. I stopped taking the meds because I didn't want to add to my already numerous side effects from my other meds and get sicker.
I now know that both the GERD and a hiatal hernia can cause breathing difficulties. I have both. Add beta blockers and calcium channel blockers and ACEIs all of which can cause breathing problems in some people....no wonder I couldn't breathe! Did you know there's one specific type of asthma caused by GERD?

[Vanessa74]

I had no idea? Do you know what that type of asthma is called.

I too am on a Beta Blocker - begin weaning off this week. And since doubling my asthma meds have noticed the my Acid/GERD seems worse especially at night when I take the second dosage.

WOW - this is odd and scary stuff.

Thank you for your help!