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Asthma Sufferers Work to Take a Deep Breath as Albuterol Shortage Gets Worse After Manufacturer Shut Down

Asthma Sufferers Work to Take a Deep Breath as Albuterol Shortage Gets Worse After Manufacturer Shut Down

by M. C. Millman

After a major supplier of liquid albuterol for hospitals shut down last week, the ongoing shortage of the asthma drug is expected to worsen.

Liquid albuterol has been scarce since last summer, according to the American Society of Health-System Pharmacists, and since last October, according to the US Food and Drug Administration's shortages list. 

Concerns over the shortage of the drug are only growing with the news of the recently shut down Illinois-based Akorn Operating Company LLC, which filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy in May 2020. The company was the only one making liquid albuterol products for continuous nebulizer treatment for hospitals and has not been available since last fall. The timing is especially concerning given that we are heading into spring allergy season when asthma symptoms can be exasperated. 

Hospitals report that the one remaining major domestic source of liquid albuterol, Nephron Pharmaceuticals, has been on backorder and that they only began shipping albuterol last Friday. 

The ongoing shortage has hospitals across the US keeping a close watch on their supplies of the drug, with additional concerns being voiced about having to delay discharge if the patients themselves can't get enough medicine. Visits to the ER for people with breathing problems who can't get the medicine they need are also expected to increase. 

Children's Hospital Association is working with STAQ Pharma to start the production of albuterol for children's hospitals. STAQ should have production ready to go by May.

In the meantime, hospitals can help themselves through protocol changes, such as making products on-site and finding different suppliers.

Inhalers have not been impacted by the shortage thus far, but this can change with the newly worsening shortage. 

Patients, who can't get the albuterol they need, are advised to ask their doctor if there is a substitute they can take while continuing to take their controller medicine as advised by their doctor. Additionally, patients with breathing problems are encouraged to take precautions to avoid asthma triggers. Additionally, using a spacer for an inhaler for those with a pump will help the medication reach the lungs better. 

Photo Credit: Flickr


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