Treating COPD Patients with Inhaled Medications in the Era of COVID-19 and Beyond: Options and Rationales for Patients at Home

Abstract

Arzu Ari,1 Karen Blain,2 Said Soubra,1 Nicola A Hanania3 1Department of Respiratory Care, Texas State University, Round Rock, TX, USA; 2Department of Respiratory Therapy, University of North Carolina Wilmington, Wilmington, NC, USA; 3Airways Clinical Research Center, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, TX, USACorrespondence: Arzu Ari Email [email protected]: COVID-19 has affected millions of patients, caregivers, and clinicians around the world. Severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) spreads via droplets and close contact from person to person, and there has been an increased concern regarding aerosol drug delivery due to the potential aerosolizing of viral particles. To date, little focus has been given to aerosol drug delivery to patients with COVID-19 treated at home to minimize their hospital utilization. Since most hospitals were stressed with multiple admissions and experienced restricted healthcare resources in the era of COVID-19 pandemic, treating patients with COPD at home became essential to minimize their hospital utilization. However, guidance on how to deliver aerosolized medications safely and effectively to this patient population treated at home is still lacking. In this paper, we provide some strategies and rationales for device and interface selection, delivery technique, and infection control for patients with COPD who are being treated at home in the era of COVID-19 and beyond.Keywords: coronavirus, COVID-19, SARS-CoV-2, aerosols, nebulizers, inhalers, homecare, infection control

Keywords

• coronavirus
• covid-19
• sars-cov-2
• aerosols
• nebulizers
• inhalers
• homecare
• and infection control.