4 replies to this topic

[MarkRT]

Hi Folks,

It's Monday - start of a new week and a wonderful opportunity to repeat a great week - if that's what last week was for you, or to improve on last week - if it wasn't so stellar in your wolrd.

If you have questions - about most anything - go ahead and post them and I'll take a stab at answering them for you.

Have a great day and WEEK!

Mark

[Dee]

It's not Monday any more, but in case someone stops by.....

Is it always advised that a COPD patient should be prescribed the ADVAIR DISKUS along with SPIRIVA, or is sometimes only one suggested?

[MarkRT]

Hi Dee,

Spiriva is sometimes prescribed as a single medication, without Advair or symbicort or other beta-agonist medication. Patients who show a significant response to Spiriva, but lesser or no response to beta-agonist medications on spirometry testing are most often those candidates.

Some physicians prefer to start their patients out on only one medication. Since Spiriva is specifically a maintenance drug for Chronic Bronchitis/emphysema/COPD, it is not unreasonable to be a first-line and sole use medication.

Eventually, most patients will end up with the 'trio', though.

Mark

[Dee]

Thank you Mark.

[craigrrt]

We are very close to having a triple combo med which will include a long acting beta 2, a corticosteroid, and a a med like spiriva. We should see this in the next year or two.