Anti-static treatments for valved holding chambers

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There has been a trend towards treating younger children with asthma using metered-dose inhalers through valved holding chambers (VHC). This approach has definite advantages such as being quicker in use and resulting in less oropharyngeal deposition. Khan et al at the University of Florida hypothesize that a new VHC/mask (AeroChamber MAX^®) made with a special plastic which dissipates charge would result in significantly increased lung bioavailability of an inhaled corticosteroid compared to the conventional device. Two devices were compared in 12 patients aged 1-6 years with well controlled asthma using HFA-fluticasone as the treatment. The anti-static chamber increased lung bioavailability to a variable degree. In four of the patients, systemic levels became potentially excessive, and the authors recommend that when using such a chamber, the dose of inhaled corticosteroid should be weaned to the minimum required to maintain asthma control.