WASHINGTON (Reuters) -
U.S. patients who use certain asthma
inhalers made with ozone-depleting propellants should talk to
their doctors now about alternatives ahead of a ban that starts
in January, health officials said on Friday.

Albuterol inhalers that use chlorofluorocarbons (CFCs) to
propel the medicine into the lungs will no longer be sold in
the United States after this year because CFCs damage the
Earth's ozone layer.

Doctors should begin switching patients to other albuterol
inhalers that contain hydrofluroalkane (HFA) propellants, the
Food and Drug Administration said.

Patients need to familiarize themselves with the HFA
versions, agency officials said. The spray may taste different
and feel softer than CFC-propelled inhalers.

Also, HFA inhalers need to be cleaned regularly to prevent
blockages in the device that could prevent the medicine from
reaching the lungs.

Patient advocate Sandra Fusco-Walker urged switching now to
give patients time to adjust to differences. For example, the
CFC versions need to be primed by pumping the device two times.
The newer ones require three or four pumps for priming,
depending on the product, in order to deliver the medicine
properly, she said.

“It is a learning curve, and the problem is it is a
life-saving medication,” said Fusco-Walker, director of patient
advocacy at the Allergy and Asthma Network Mothers of
Asthmatics.

The inhalers treat wheezing in patients with asthma and
chronic obstructive pulmonary disease.

Most patients already have switched, FDA officials said.
Only one manufacturer, Armstrong Pharmaceuticals, still sells
an albuterol CFC inhaler.

All of the HFA inhalers available now are name brands and
cost more than Armstrong's generic CFC product. FDA officials
said it was unclear when a generic HFA inhaler would reach the
market.

The Armstrong albuterol CFC inhaler usually costs between
$13 and $17, said Dr. Stuart Stoloff, a Nevada family physician
and member of a National Institutes of Health panel that wrote
asthma treatment guidelines. The price of brand-name HFA
inhalers ranged from about $29 to $65 at various pharmacies
that Stoloff surveyed.

The availability of the generic CFC inhaler is already
limited in some areas, said Stoloff, who also encouraged
patients to switch as soon as possible.

The FDA-approved albuterol HFA inhalers are Teva
Pharmaceutical Industries Ltd's ProAir HFA, Schering-Plough
Corp's Proventil HFA and GlaxoSmithKline Plc's Ventolin HFA.

Sepracor Inc's Xopenex HFA is another option, the FDA said.
It contains a similar medicine, levalbuterol.

Fusco-Walker said many patients without health insurance
are eligible for discounted, or in some cases, free inhalers.
People with insurance may see co-payments rise, or their
insurers covering only one of the four HFA inhalers, she said.
Her group is pushing for broader coverage.

(Editing by Tim Dobbyn)