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Nebulizer for Asthma Treatment

A nebulizer is sometimes used for asthma because:

The medicine can be given over a longer period of time.
It may be easier to use for small children or for people who have serious difficulty breathing or have trouble using an inhaler.

A nebulizer uses a face mask or mouthpiece to deliver medicine in the form of a fine mist (aerosol). You breathe in the nebulized medicine through the mouthpiece or face mask . The mouthpiece or face mask needs to be cleaned after each use.

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In general, a nebulizer may not always be the best choice for delivering daily asthma medicines to children because it:

Is hard to keep the mask on the child's face for the length of time needed for each treatment.
Can be more expensive to use than a metered-dose inhaler (MDI).
Can deliver more medicine than is needed, compared with an inhaler and a spacer . This makes it easier to give a child too much medicine.
Has tubing that needs to be replaced every 3 to 6 months.

By	Healthwise Staff
Primary Medical Reviewer	E. Gregory Thompson, MD - Internal Medicine
Specialist Medical Reviewer	Lora J. Stewart, MD, MPH - Allergy and Immunology, Pediatrics
Last Revised	March 17, 2011

WebMD Medical Reference from Healthwise

Last Updated: March 17, 2011

This information is not intended to replace the advice of a doctor. Healthwise disclaims any liability for the decisions you make based on this information.