You may give your child asthma medications using a home nebulizer, also known as a breathing machine. A nebulizer delivers asthma medications by changing them from a liquid to a mist. Your healthcare provider may want your child to take their medicine with a nebulizer because it may be easier for them to take this way. Your child only has to sit still and breathe.

• Your child gets the medicine by breathing it in through a facemask.
• This is a good option for babies and younger children.
• Breathing treatments usually take about 5 to 10 minutes to administer and get the medicine into the lungs.
• Your child's healthcare provider will tell you if a nebulized medicine is right for your child.

Your child may be able to use a metered dose inhaler (MDI) -- a handheld device that delivers a measured amount of asthma medicine into the lungs. An MDI can be used with or without a spacer. A spacer is a chamber that attaches to the MDI and holds the burst of medication. You can use an MDI for both controller medicines and rescue medicines.

• Some inhalers contain a combination of two different medicines, allowing both medications to be delivered from one device.
• Your healthcare provider will tell you if an MDI (with or without a spacer) is right for your child.