Conclusion
The study reiterated the fact that poor inhaler technique is a common problem with patients on inhaler therapy. Spirometry is a simple, convenient tool and widely available instructed where measuring urinary concentration through HPLC is a tedious and complex process which makes it unlikely to be accepted to use on a routine basis in a clinical setup. Assessing the optimal inhaler technique through measurement of urinary salbutamol concentration is likely to be better than measuring the pulmonary function through spirometry alone but it comes with the cost. The 30-minute urinary concentration of salbutamol was linear with inhaled dose and the results of this study witnessed it to correlate with the control status of the disease. It may help to identify patients who were under-dosed due to poor handling of inhaler devices and provide appropriate training and monitoring. Understanding the complexity coupled with the procedure, this method can at least be initiated in patients reporting frequent exacerbations, hospitalization, and those who need multiple drugs for disease control.