Metered-Dose Inhaler | Parkview Health

A metered-dose inhaler lets you breathe medicine into your lungs quickly. Inhaled medicine works faster than the same medicine in a pill. An inhaler allows you to take less medicine than you would need if you took it as a pill.

“Metered-dose” means that the inhaler gives a measured amount of medicine each time you use it. A metered-dose inhaler gives medicine in the form of a liquid mist.

Your doctor may want you to use a spacer with your inhaler. A spacer is a chamber that you attach to the inhaler. The chamber holds the medicine before you inhale it. That way, you can inhale the medicine in as many breaths as you need. Doctors recommend using a spacer with most metered-dose inhalers. This is even more important when using corticosteroid medicines.

Helping your child use a metered-dose inhaler with a mask spacer

A metered-dose inhaler provides a puff of medicine for your child’s lungs in a measured dose.

The best way to get the most medicine into your child’s lungs is to use a spacer with a metered-dose inhaler. A spacer is a chamber that you attach to the inhaler. The spacer holds the medicine so your child can use as many breaths as needed to inhale it.

A regular spacer has a mouthpiece that some younger children have a hard time using. They may need a mask spacer instead. The mask spacer has a face mask instead of the mouthpiece. It fits over the child’s mouth and nose.

A mask spacer is used for children about 5 years old or younger. But some kids may not like to use it after about age 2. If this happens, you will need to teach your child how to use a regular spacer.

Why does using a metered-dose inhaler with a mask spacer help children?

A metered-dose inhaler (MDI) with a regular spacer has a mouthpiece that some younger children find hard to use. But a mask spacer that fits over the mouth and nose can make the inhaler easier to use.

Using an MDI with a mask spacer:

Helps get the right amount of medicine into your child's lungs.
Can help keep your child's asthma symptoms under control and allow your child to live an active life.
May prevent or reduce side effects of the medicine.
May let your child use less medicine than is found in a pill but get the same effect.
May result in the medicine working faster than a pill form.

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