Table 1 The advantages and challenges of different inhalation devices
From: Novel inhalation therapy in pulmonary fibrosis: principles, applications and prospects
Inhalation devices | Specifical class | Personalized advantage | Personalized challenges | Overall advantage | overall challenges |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Air-jet nebulizer | Easy maintenance and convenient operation | Unable to achieve lung deposition through downward spraying | Delivering high doses of medication Suitable for patients of multiple age groups No propellant needed Suitable for drugs that cannot be made into powder | Require a large quantity, easily lead to medication waste Improper cleaning of the reusable machine can result in microbial residue Not conducive to portability | |
Ultrasonic nebulizer | High fog output | Machine heating may affect drug performance | |||
Mesh nebulizer | Less noisy Higher lung deposition rates Lower agent residuals High stability | Not suitable for long-term operation | |||
VMN | Delivering homogeneous-sized aerosol particles (1–5 µm) Higher lung deposition rates | More noise More expensive | |||
DPI | No outside energy sources | Challenging for those with impaired lung function and poor hand-mouth coordination Sensitivity to inhalation flow rate | Portable and compact Reduced medication dosage requirement Longer shelf life No priming required | High oropharyngeal deposition rate Limitations based on medication properties | |
pMDI | Good for inhaled corticosteroids Useful for patients who cannot coordinate inhalation and actuation | Propellant dependency Limited dose counters | |||
Soft mist inhalers [158] | NA | Ease of inhalation High nebulization efficiency and lung deposition No coordination required Adjustable dosing | High cost Limitations based on medication properties Requires proper technique | NA | NA |