Maybe you’ve got a great doctor or ran into an excellent nurse or RT who did pass these along, but I learned them from other asthma parents.
1. Brush or rinse after steroids.
Inhaled corticosteroids (ICS) can cause thrush but they’re also hard on teeth, big time. I ran into a messageboard mom years ago who never heard or read this tip, and the dentist found 11 cavities in her asthmatic son’s mouth. Eleven. See also:
2. Tell the dentist about the corticosteroids.
Especially for kids, because—how can I put this?—they’re somewhat less than vigilant about brushing and flossing. I’ve actually had sealants put on AG’s permanent teeth to help protect them.
3. Hold your breath when you use an inhaler.
Don’t know why? Check this video.
4. Bronchodilators before ICS. Always.
If your kid uses two inhalers rather than one of the combination ones, during the times she needs a dose of both—like right before bed, for example—most of the asthma sites recommend using the bronchodilator about 20 minutes before the maintenance one. Why? A short-acting beta agonist reaches full effect after 20 minutes, so her airways will be nice and open to accept the anti-inflammatory steroids. It’s the best possible way for the meds to get to the right place.
And while I have your attention.
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Right now Blogher is running a survey, and if you’ve got a couple minutes please head over and fill it out for them. You could win a pass to a free BlogHer conference.
I love tip # 4!!! It makes perfect sense and we have NEVER read that or been instructed in that! Thank you Amy!! All four of those are concise and awesome tips! Our dd has had her permanent teeth resealed several times! I think she either grinds them or the sealant comes off easily b/c of the asthma meds? In anycase the dentist checks her sealants every 6 months. And, we are vigilant about rinsing now after Flovent b/c of your tip! So I am eternally grateful for you passing on what you have learned over the yrs…..It is concise and easy to understand…….. so a million thank yous to you!
Well done as always!
And yes, I’d rather be a canary than a frog!
AG’s never needed hers resealed, so I don’t actually know if asthma meds affect it……of course, she’s younger than your daughter. Although I DO grind my teeth, and the dentist could tell b/c of wear and tear on my molars—I don’t know how long that takes to show up, though.
Yeah, I’d rather be a canary, too.
I have to admit I did not know that oral steroids may cause cavities. Of course I knew about thrush, but not about the cavities. That’s very handy knowledge.
These are great–I figured them out earlier, but the cavity one was new to me, too!
This tip I stole from Anton Stralman of the Toronto Maple Leafs (and helps avoid thrush):
Twice daily meds–take ‘em before you brush your teeth. You’ve gotta do both anyways.
I’ve never had thrush, so it must be working
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