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.