Drug Name

Proventil (Albuterol)

Common use

Proventil is a bronchodilator that relaxes muscles in the airways and increases air flow to the lungs.
Proventil is used to treat or prevent bronchospasm in people with reversible obstructive airway disease. It is also used to prevent exercise-induced bronchospasm.

Dosage and direction

Use Proventil exactly as it was prescribed for you. Do not use the medication in larger amounts, or use it for longer than recommended by your doctor.

Contraindications

You should not use Proventil if you are allergic to salbutamol.
If you have certain conditions, you may need a dose adjustment or special tests to safely use this medication.

Before using Proventil, tell your doctor if you have:

• heart disease, high blood pressure, or congestive heart failure;
• a heart rhythm disorder;
• a seizure disorder such as epilepsy;
• diabetes; or
• overactive thyroid.

Tell your doctor if you are pregnant or plan to become pregnant during treatment. It is not known whether salbutamol passes into breast milk or if it could harm a nursing baby.

Drug interaction

Before using this medication, tell your doctor if you are taking any of the following medicines:

•   a diuretic (water pill);
•   digoxin (digitalis, Lanoxin);
•   a beta-blocker such as atenolol (Tenormin), metoprolol (Lopressor), propranolol (Inderal), and others;
•   an antidepressant such as amitriptyline (Elavil, Etrafon), doxepin (Sinequan), imipramine (Janimine, Tofranil), nortriptyline (Pamelor), and others;
•   an MAO inhibitor such as isocarboxazid (Marplan), phenelzine (Nardil), rasagiline (Azilect), selegiline (Eldepryl, Emsam), or tranylcypromine (Parnate);
•   or other bronchodilators such as levalbuterol (Xopenex), bitolterol (Tornalate), pirbuterol (Maxair), terbutaline (Brethine, Bricanyl), salmeterol (Serevent), isoetherine (Bronkometer), metaproterenol (Alupent, Metaprel), or isoproterenol (Isuprel Mistometer).

Tell your doctor about all the prescription and over-the-counter medications you use. This includes vitamins, minerals, herbal products, and drugs prescribed by other doctors.

Missed dose

Use the medication as soon as you remember. If it is almost time for the next dose, skip the missed dose and use the medicine at the next regularly scheduled time. Do not use extra medicine to make up the missed dose.

Overdose

Seek emergency medical attention if you think you have used too much of this medicine. An overdose of salbutamol can be fatal. Overdose symptoms may include nervousness, headache, tremor, dry mouth, chest pain or heavy feeling, rapid or uneven heart rate, pain spreading to the arm or shoulder, nausea, sweating, dizziness, seizure (convulsions), feeling light-headed or fainting.

Storage

Store Proventil at room temperature away from moisture and heat. Extreme heat can cause the medicine canister to burst. Do not store it in your car on hot days. Do not throw an empty canister into open flame.

Precautions

When using the inhaler device for the first time, prime it by spraying 4 test sprays into the air, away from your face. Shake well before priming. Also prime the inhaler if you have not used it for 2 weeks or longer, or if you have dropped the inhaler.

Possible side effects

Stop using Proventil and get emergency medical help if you have any of these signs of an allergic reaction: hives; difficulty breathing; swelling of your face, lips, tongue, or throat.

Call your doctor at once if you have a serious side effect such as:

• bronchospasm (wheezing, chest tightness, trouble breathing), especially after starting a new canister of this medicine;
• chest pain and fast, pounding, or uneven heart beats;
• tremor, nervousness;
• low potassium (confusion, uneven heart rate, extreme thirst, increased urination, leg discomfort, muscle weakness or limp feeling); or dangerously high blood pressure (severe headache, blurred vision, buzzing in your ears, anxiety, confusion, chest pain, shortness of breath, uneven heartbeats, seizure).

Less serious Proventil side effects may include:

• headache, dizziness, nervousness;
• sleep problems (insomnia);
• cough, hoarseness, sore throat, runny or stuffy nose;
• dry mouth and throat;
• muscle pain; or diarrhea.