Analysis of metered dose Inhaler technique errors in patients with obstructive airway diseases

Background:  Obstructive lung disease is a category of respiratory disease characterized by airway obstruction. It is generally characterized by inflamed and easily collapsible airways, obstruction to airflow, problems exhaling and frequent medical clinic visits and hospitalizations. Types of obstructive lung disease include; asthma, bronchiectasis, bronchitis and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD). The global prevalence of physiologically defined COPDin adults aged >40 yr is approximately 9-10%. Objective:  Objective of the present study was to determine the frequency of metered dose inhaler technique errors in patients presenting with obstructive airway disease. Materials And Methods:  This was a cross sectional study conducted at department of Pulmonology, Lady Reading Hospital Peshawar from April 2016 to August 2016. Sample size was 170 cases using 19.8% proportion of inhaler technique error, 95% confidence level & 6% margin of error. More over nonprobability consecutive sampling technique was used for sample collection. Results:  Our study shows that mean age was 48 years with SD± 7.42. Fifty seven percent patients were male and 43% patients were female. Eighty three percent patients had inhaler technique error while (17%) patients didn't had inhaler technique errors. Conclusion:  Our study concludes that the incidence of metered dose inhaler technique errors was found to be 83% in patients presenting with obstructive airway disease in our setup.