According to my recent poll, a lot of people have issues with the HFA, environmentally-friendly inhalers. The HFA style inhaler is being used both for controller meds and for rescue inhalers with albuterol and levalbuterol. The old, well-loved CFC inhalers will be completely off the market at the end of 2008, but even now they’re getting harder to find.

That’s made a lot of people unhappy, but we have to face the facts, folks. The HFA inhalers are here to stay. So what can we do to make them work better? Apparently, quite a lot, according to a recent press release from the Allergy & Asthma Network Mothers of Asthmatics (AANMA).

• Use better MDI technique. It’s the technique that forces the drug into your airways, not the type of propellant.

• Clean your HFA device frequently. The new HFA inhalers clog more easily than the old CFC inhalers. Frequent rinsing helps.

• Prime your HFA inhaler, using the instructions it comes with. HFA inhalers need more and different priming than your old CFC type. Be sure you know how to prime correctly.

• Try until you get relief. Apparently a big difference in the new HFA inhalers with albuterol is that each brand is quite different from the others. So, if one doesn’t work well for you, ask your doctor if you can try something different until you get the level of relief/control you’re looking for.

• HFA inhalers cost more because it’s too soon for generic equivalents. The transition to new manufacturing has cost the pharmaceutical companies too. Generic versions should emerge in time, but it may take years. Meanwhile, many of the pharmaceutical companies are offering discounts, coupons, and other financial assistance. Check their websites to learn more.

It’s in our best interest to make the best of the new inhalers. A big “machine” (the U.S. government) made this happen, so it’s not likely going away.