Fluticasone / salmeterol for COPD, Maintenance User Reviews

• bro...
• December 15, 2016

Fluticasone / salmeterol "The very next day after starting Advair, my life improved dramatically. I am not kidding... this stuff really works. I now do 40 minutes of yoga and a full mile of accelerated aerobic walking (20 minutes) 5 days a week. After that, I immediately grab my oximeter... it is almost always at 97 or 98. My doctor says I am in severe stage and functioning at level 1. I don't even use my nebulizer and Albuterol anymore. I am 71 years old and am being fully honest."

• Joe...
• Taken for 2 to 5 years
• February 13, 2019

Fluticasone / salmeterol "Advair does work really well, but the disk spray is terrible. This medicine is very expensive, they should work on a new container. You have to clean it a lot, and when you do, the number of uses goes down to 0 when it has plenty in it. Then you have to waste medicine using it in the air to see if there is any left. This medicine is so expensive, they should look into fixing the container it comes in."

• The...
• November 15, 2017

Fluticasone / salmeterol "I used to take the Advair in Diskus form. I couldn't breathe in fast to get enough meds, so they switched me to the aerosol type Advair. This one works well for me. The thing is, some doctors do not tell you you MUST rinse your entire mouth and gargle after every use. It can cause thrush, which is awful, and voice loss, hoarseness, coughing, and mouth sores too, if you leave residue within the mouth or throat. This has a corticosteroid in it, so please rinse well! Avoid side effects. It will help you breathe because it's a beta antagonist blocker or something, which relaxes the lung muscle. Take care of your mouth! I have dentures, so I must rinse even MORE, but never had thrush in 9 years over it and can breathe easier now."

• bla...
• November 29, 2011

Fluticasone / salmeterol "I started taking Advair 50/500 about 2 years ago. I must say that I have noticed almost a complete turnaround with my breathing problems, which is wonderful. However, I am in the emergency room almost half of every month due to severe heartburn, gallbladder attacks, severe stomach, throat, and esophagus pain. It is all due to the Advair. I have been on all the breathing medicines, and Advair works the best. Just don't know if I can keep dealing with all these side effects."

• Ayo...
• February 21, 2012

Fluticasone / salmeterol "Advair helps me to breathe, bottom line. I rated it an 8 only because of the side effect of heartburn, which can be almost intolerable at times. I can find something to relieve that discomfort! I don't really have much of an appetite (see as a good thing for maintaining blood sugar levels and weight). I am using it in conjunction with another once-a-day inhaler. I feel better and clearer than I have in years!"

• she...
• Taken for 1 to 6 months
• October 19, 2020

Fluticasone / salmeterol "Advair Diskus helped my breathing by day two. I loved it at first, other than the cost. By week three, my joints started to hurt, and by the 4th week, I was having some real joint pain. After seeing the doctor and stopping the Advair Diskus, the pain stopped within a few days. This has been a problem for me with some other COPD meds, but this was by far the worst for pain for me."

• Mcs...
• Taken for 2 to 5 years
• October 29, 2015

Fluticasone / salmeterol "I have been taking Advair 250/50 for going on 3 years, and I love it! My breathing oxygen level stays in the high 90s, and I haven't made a trip to the ER for not being able to breathe after I started it. Highly recommend it, even though it is pricey."

• Coo...
• September 28, 2017

Fluticasone / salmeterol "On Medicare and hit the donut hole in August. Have to pay $185 for one month. Way too much for something that's helping me breathe. Something I have to have. When is a generic or something affordable coming out?"

• wat...
• September 14, 2010

Fluticasone / salmeterol "Used it before, but then had it changed to Symbicort. No way of telling which one is better. I seem to get a lot of head colds and sinus drainage with both. Now my MD is putting me back on Advair 250/50, but I doubt it will be effective at all. I walk 5 miles a day in an hour and 13 minutes. So if my time improves a little, then maybe it does help more than Symbicort did."

• Anonymous
• July 21, 2008

Fluticasone / salmeterol "I have been on Advair Diskus for only 2 days, and already I feel like I have much more energy, and I don't wheeze like I used to. Haven't had to have my inhaler in 2 days either. Time will tell, let's hope I have found something that works, and I can get back to a normal lifestyle."

• Lul...
• Taken for 10 years or more
• September 20, 2015

Fluticasone / salmeterol "I have severe COPD and have been on Advair 50/250 for 11 years. I am also diabetic due to being overweight and not being able to exercise. My FEV is 15%. Advair helps, BUT it has played havoc with my blood sugar. I lost 65 pounds since being diagnosed with type 2 diabetes a year ago. My blood sugar went down to normal levels since I had to quit taking the Advair (temporarily) due to the high cost. My breathing worsened, so I refilled my Advair, but my blood sugar went back up over 200. I'm in a dilemma now. The insulin is $600/month. The Advair is $200. If I don't take the Advair, I hardly need any insulin. I do take Xopenex/ipratropium via neb, but that doesn't last all day like the Advair. It's part B, so more affordable by far."

• Gin...
• October 1, 2019

"I was doing so good on the Advair 500/50 Diskus. Well, then, Medicare decides to switch me to the generic form. My O2 stats have dropped drastically. From 97 down to 93 and sometimes much lower, like 87. My throat stayed clogged up, as well as my chest being heavy. I'm having muscle tremors as well. My heart shoots up to 128 and higher at times. The generic Advair sucks big time. This inferior medicine is not the best or even close to the original. In the meantime, I still have to struggle to breathe and try to fight this system that's forced upon me, as well as others. Shame on all of those involved. I was on Advair for about 9 years. This generic stuff for about 4 months."

• Sou...
• December 16, 2017

Fluticasone / salmeterol "I've been on Advair Diskus 250/50 for almost one month since being out of the hospital where I coded from COPD. Needless to say, I have quit smoking after 30 years (cold turkey). I can actually breathe & no more wheezing. Only drawback is financially, it costs $530, and I now have thick mucus in the back of my throat that I remember having when I once had pneumonia. My throat stays sore, and I am so afraid of coming down with pneumonia. Because of this, I am going to try using Advair once a day instead of twice a day. I also have nasal drip all night as well."

• Str...
• Taken for 1 to 2 years
• December 1, 2021

Fluticasone / salmeterol "I've told 3 of my doctors that this medication is a waste of time for me, all it does is make me feel like I'm holding my breath with absolutely no help with my breathing. My doctor had ordered me Trelegy, but apparently Humana has a problem with a medication that actually works."

• The...
• Taken for 10 years or more
• December 13, 2017

Fluticasone / salmeterol "I first began using Advair after my second two-week stay in the hospital for upper respiratory infection. For much of my youth and all of my young adult life up to this point in 1997, I had constant shortness of breath and periodic times where I was unable to regulate my breathing without a bronchial inhaler 5, 6, or more times a day. The first time I used Advair, I noticed a difference, and within days, I was breathing like I was 12 years old again. I could not believe the difference. It was night and day. I know that other users may not get the same level of relief, but for me, it has been a miracle."

• Lpi...
• Taken for 5 to 10 years
• January 16, 2017

Fluticasone / salmeterol "I have both asthma symptoms and COPD, so Advair was given to me for the asthma first. It really helped me breathe better, and it is a great med for long-term control. As my COPD progressed, I was unable to get a good breath to inhale from the Diskus, so my doc changed me to the HFA inhaler form. Advair is great and effective, and I sure know when I have run out how much it helps me breathe."

• Voi...
• Taken for less than 1 month
• March 20, 2017

Fluticasone / salmeterol "By the third day, I had lost my voice, developed pneumonia, been unable to cough out production from my lungs, scarred my lungs even further. I would expect this product to be removed by the FDA soon. If the condition lasts, I'll be seeking legal counsel."

• Ven...
• Taken for 1 to 6 months
• July 17, 2021

Fluticasone / salmeterol "I started taking this medicine for a COVID cough. After one week of taking it, I started having body aches. Another week passed, and I was having chest pressure. It did help with the cough, but then I started having heartburn and was coughing more than when I had COVID. I started to develop gastrointestinal issues. After eating, I would belch, and regurgitation would happen. Heartburn and chest pain were also common. A cough would happen after eating. I went to see a pulmonologist, and she told me that I can just stop taking it and that no withdrawal symptoms would happen. That was a lie. After stopping it, cold turkey, I started feeling like absolute rubbish. I started to have diarrhea, abdominal pain, insomnia, anxiety, depression, feeling dizzy and faint-like. She never told me about adrenal insufficiency that could happen after stopping a corticosteroid. It’s been almost 3 months since I stopped the medication, and I feel like the symptoms are only getting worse."

• mia...
• Taken for less than 1 month
• May 27, 2021

Fluticasone / salmeterol "The worst inhaler I have ever used. It has caused side effects of a sore throat, bad cough, congestion, sleeping issues, muscle and bone pain, and doesn't work well as an inhaler. Do NOT recommend. My emergency inhaler works better and lasts longer."

• sun...
• April 19, 2008

"This medication is great. This medicine helped me to start breathing again after an exacerbated COPD attack 2 months ago. I was hospitalized for 8 days. I did get a candida infection of my mouth and throat when I first started using this. My pulmonary doctor has me using Crest ProHealth mouthwash after each use to prevent oral candida infection."

• TSV...
• March 16, 2008

"After two weeks of using it, I felt much better. I went back to my doctor for a check-up, and he told me my lungs were sounding better. I am very pleased with it so far. I have been on it for 4 weeks now with no side effects as of yet."

• Mai...
• Taken for 1 to 6 months
• April 14, 2023

Fluticasone / salmeterol "The preliminary diagnosis is COPD, pending approval from a pulmonologist. I have been taking this medication for 6 weeks. It is making me tired, lethargic, light-headed, and gaining weight. I feel good in the morning until inhaling the first dose of the day. After 6 weeks, there is no improvement. I plan to stop this medication very shortly. I need my energy back and do not want to fight weight gain."

• Ste...
• November 6, 2015

"I have been using Advair 25/250 for about 1.5 years and am very satisfied. My breathing has improved immensely, and I can easily walk 3 miles at 4 mph in 45 minutes each day. My health insurance plan covers the cost; it tends to be costly in Canada. I recently discovered that you can buy it in Asia for $20 (marketed as Seretide) rather than paying $175 in Canada. Very effective medication for me!"

• dog...
• Taken for less than 1 month
• January 14, 2025

Fluticasone / salmeterol "I was born with asthma. Super sick when I was little. I had to take treatments every 4 hours every day. But as a teenager and young adult, my condition was barely non-existent. Unfortunately, I did smoke for 12 years on and off. Developed some COPD starter symptoms and valve collapsed in the bottom of my lung. I quit 7 years ago, but obviously, my lungs are still damaged. I had to put hunting, hiking, even walking upstairs at a normal pace because I couldn't breathe. I remember one party we went to, my husband had to buckle my heel because I couldn't breathe if I didn't stand up straight. I just took a brisk walk, I had to stop to catch my breath. Now, thankfully, after taking this drug for only a week, I can work out again without needing my rescue inhaler. I can vacuum again without rushing to the ER because I'm having an asthma attack. I can walk up the stairs at a normal pace. I walk up and down a full flight of stairs over 35 times a day. I feel great! I recommend it!"

• Dee...
• Taken for 1 to 2 years
• November 23, 2021

"Well, I think the medication is working properly, the disc that displays the numbers is not functioning properly. This is a problem for me since I depend on the display of the numbers so I can discern what time of day the dose is needed."