Two spacer devices for aerosol inhalation were compared by a crossover study of FEV 1 response to 200 μg of salbutamol in 20 asthmatics evaluated in separate days. Fisonair ® (750 ml reservoir) use led to an average 0.32 L increase in FEV 1, which was significantly higher than the 0.26 L obtained with Jet® (103 ml reservoir) (p = 0.02). Bronchodilator response with Jet® was 21% lower (CI: -7 to -35%) than with Fisonair ® .

Keywords: Asthma. Aerosols. Delivery systems.

Objective: To evaluate whether the use of inhaled albuterol via a metered-dose inhaler with a large-volume spacer with antistatic treatment modifies the bronchodilator test results when compared with the usual technique (no spacer). Methods: A prospective study involving 24 patients, 18-45 years of age, clinically suspected of having asthma, and under treatment at the Outpatient Pulmonary Clinic of the Federal University of Minas Gerais Hospital das Clínicas, located in the city of Belo Horizonte, Brazil. All of the patients underwent two bronchodilator tests: one with and one without the use of a large-volume spacer. Results: There was no significant difference in the variation of FEV1 prior to and after bronchodilator use between the two techniques (mean FEV1 = 0.01 L; 95% CI: −0.05 to 0.06; p = 0.824). No statistically significant difference was found between the two techniques regarding the qualitative results on the bronchodilator test (p = 1.00). There was concordance between the techniques in terms of the bronchodilator test results (kappa coefficient = 0.909; p < 0.005). Conclusions: According to the results of this study, the use of large-volume spacers does not significantly modify bronchodilator test results.

Keywords: Asthma; Spirometry; Inhalation spacers.