Medications

Your CF doctor may prescribe many medications to help keep your lungs clear, prevent or fight infections and, for some people, help correct the underlying cause of the disease. Medications that people need to fight infections for a long time may require additional devices, such as PICCs and ports.

What You Need To Know

Blog Post

Antibiotics

Antibiotics fight infections caused by bacteria. They should not be used to treat infections caused by viruses (such as the flu) or types of fungi, which include yeasts and molds.

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  1. Explainer

    Mucus Thinners

    Mucus thinners, such as mucolytics, are inhaled medications that help thin the mucus in the airways so you can cough it out of your lungs more easily. The two main types of mucus thinners are hypertonic saline and dornase alfa (Pulmozyme®).

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  2. Article

    Nebulizer Care at Home

    It is important to always clean and disinfect your nebulizer because you can breathe in germs through your nebulizer and risk developing a lung infection.

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  3. Explainer

    CFTR Modulator Therapies

    Here's what you need to know about the four CFTR (cystic fibrosis transmembrane conductance regulator) modulators, ivacaftor (Kalydeco®), lumacaftor/ivacaftor (Orkambi®), tezacaftor/ivacaftor (Symdeko®), and elexacaftor/tezacaftor/ivacaftor (Trikafta™).

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  1. Article

    Bronchodilators

    Bronchodilators may widen airways by helping the surrounding muscles relax. This could allow more air to travel through the airways, which may help other medications work more effectively.

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  2. Article

    Vascular Access Devices: PICCs and Ports

    Vascular access devices, or PICCS and ports, allow repeated and long-term access to the bloodstream for frequent or regular administration of drugs, like intravenous (IV) antibiotics.

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  3. Article

    About the Drug Development Pipeline

    The Cystic Fibrosis Foundation facilitates the development of promising new drugs, and the drug development pipeline enables you to track the progress of these potential therapies.

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  4. Topic

    Clinical Trials

    This is an exciting time in cystic fibrosis clinical research. Not only are there several clinical trials of therapies to treat the underlying cause of CF, but there are also many trials to treat key symptoms of CF and improve quality of life.

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Find a Clinical Trial

Help us blaze a trail to better treatments and a cure for CF. Find a clinical trial that may be right for you.

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