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Can Prednisone Be Taken For Chronic COPD And Bronchitis?
Question: I have been diagnosed with severe chronic copd and severe chronic bronchitis. My meds are symbicort atrovent and ventolin .Lately my meds don't seem to be helping as well as they used to and im coughing constantly and getting very little sleep I am also unable to breathe for short periods of time.Now and then im put on Prednisone but only for a week .My question is am i able to take Prednisone on a permanent basis as i function so much better while taking these.Also are there any other meds that i could be taking? IM an ex smoker of 30 years but gave up smoking 20 years ago Im 68 years old Thanking you XXXXXXX XXXX
Brief Answer:
Better to avoid frequent dosing of prednisone.
Detailed Answer:
Thanks for your question on Health Care Magic.
I can understand your concern.
Prednisone is oral steroid. And on regular long term use, it can be very harmful.
So better not to take prednisone for longer duration.
Instead of this, you can increase the dose of inhaled corticosteroid (ICS).
ICS are safe for long term use. They are not having many side effects. So they can be given for longer time with out worry.
Other than inhaled treatment, N acetyl cysteine (NAC) should also be started. It is mucolytic, expectorant and antioxidant in nature. It is having excellent effects on oxidative stress in COPD patients.
Also enroll yourself in Pulmonary Rehabilitation center where chest physiotherapy and deep breathing exercises are done.
These will improve your lung function.
Also get done adult Pulmonary vaccination with pneumococcal and Influenza vaccines to prevent recurrent respiratory tract infection.
So discuss all these with your doctor.
Hope I have solved your query.
I will be happy to help you further.
Wish you good health. Thanks.
Better to avoid frequent dosing of prednisone.
Detailed Answer:
Thanks for your question on Health Care Magic.
I can understand your concern.
Prednisone is oral steroid. And on regular long term use, it can be very harmful.
So better not to take prednisone for longer duration.
Instead of this, you can increase the dose of inhaled corticosteroid (ICS).
ICS are safe for long term use. They are not having many side effects. So they can be given for longer time with out worry.
Other than inhaled treatment, N acetyl cysteine (NAC) should also be started. It is mucolytic, expectorant and antioxidant in nature. It is having excellent effects on oxidative stress in COPD patients.
Also enroll yourself in Pulmonary Rehabilitation center where chest physiotherapy and deep breathing exercises are done.
These will improve your lung function.
Also get done adult Pulmonary vaccination with pneumococcal and Influenza vaccines to prevent recurrent respiratory tract infection.
So discuss all these with your doctor.
Hope I have solved your query.
I will be happy to help you further.
Wish you good health. Thanks.
Above answer was peer-reviewed by :
Dr. Vinay Bhardwaj
Brief Answer:
Thanks for your kind words.
Detailed Answer:
Thanks for your follow up question on HCM.
I can understand your concern.
And thanks for your kind words.
It's always encouraging for doctors to hear positive feedback from patients.
Do let me know your progress.
Hope I have solved your query.
If you are not having further queries, then please close the conversation and rate my answer.
You can ask me directly on bit.ly/askdrkaushalbhavsar.
Wish you good health. Thanks.
Thanks for your kind words.
Detailed Answer:
Thanks for your follow up question on HCM.
I can understand your concern.
And thanks for your kind words.
It's always encouraging for doctors to hear positive feedback from patients.
Do let me know your progress.
Hope I have solved your query.
If you are not having further queries, then please close the conversation and rate my answer.
You can ask me directly on bit.ly/askdrkaushalbhavsar.
Wish you good health. Thanks.
Above answer was peer-reviewed by :
Dr. Chakravarthy Mazumdar
Answered by
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