albuterol

noun

al·​bu·​te·​rol al-ˈbyü-tə-ˌrȯl 

-ˌrōl

: a drug C₁₃H₂₁NO₃ used to treat asthma as an aerosol or as the sulfate in tablet form

Examples of albuterol in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

Your doctor may prescribe a liquid form of albuterol to open the airways. —Evan Forster, Parents, 17 June 2024

If the asthma attacks are very severe, albuterol is administered via a nebulizer—a special device that delivers the medicine in a fine mist—sometimes used with an infant-sized face mask so baby can inhale the drug more easily. —Evan Forster, Parents, 17 June 2024

Among its many properties, albuterol can stabilize the neurotransmitter at that junction between nerve and muscle so that the command reliably gets through to the muscle. —Lisa Sanders, M.d., New York Times, 5 June 2024

It was called albuterol, a drug that has been used for decades to treat asthma. —Lisa Sanders, M.d., New York Times, 5 June 2024

Word History

Etymology

perhaps from salicyl (radical of salicylic acid) + but(yl) + ter(tiary) entry 1 + -ol entry 1

First Known Use

1972, in the meaning defined above

Medical Definition

albuterol

noun

al·​bu·​te·​rol al-ˈbyü-tə-ˌrȯl, -ˌrōl 

: a beta-agonist bronchodilator that is administered in the form of its sulfate (C₁₃H₂₁NO₃)₂·H₂SO₄ as an inhalational aerosol or as a tablet to treat bronchospasm associated especially with asthma and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease

called also salbutamol

see combivent, proventil, ventolin