Asthma Health Center

How to Use a Metered Dose Inhaler With Inspirease Spacer

How do I know when my child's metered dose inhaler is empty?

The number of puffs contained in your child's metered dose inhaler is printed on the side of the canister. After your child has used that number of puffs, you must discard the MDI even if it continues to spray. Keep track of how many puffs your child has used.

If your child uses an MDI every day to control his or her asthma symptoms, you can determine how long it will last by dividing the total number of puffs in the MDI by the total puffs your child uses every day. For example, if your child's MDI has 200 puffs and he uses 4 puffs per day, divide 200 by 4. In this case, your child's MDI would last 50 days. Using a calendar, count forward that many days to determine when to discard your child's MDI and begin using a new one.

If your child uses an inhaler only when he needs to, you must keep track of how many times your child sprays the inhaler. If you prefer, you can obtain an inhaler that "counts down" the number of puffs each time your child presses the inhaler. Ask your child's doctor for more information on these devices.