Nearly half of asthma sufferers switch controller medications

Nearly half of asthma sufferers switch controller medications

Forty-three percent of asthma sufferers have switched controller medications, and of those, 23% have done so because they have heard about one that was better, reports a National Consumers League survey of 1,105 adult asthma sufferers and parents of sufferers. The study also found there is a disconnect between how asthma patients perceive their condition and how severe their symptoms really are. The survey showed that although 88% of patients say their asthma is moderate or mild, more than a quarter experience shortness of breath, coughing, or other symptoms at least once per week. When it comes to medication, respondents indicated that they sometimes take more of their fast-acting inhaler than prescribed, with 51% doing so because their prescribed dose took too long to work.