1. The whole of the document now emphasizes asthma control. There is now good evidence that the clinical manifestations of asthma—symptoms, sleep disturbances, limitations of daily activity, impairment of lung function, and use of rescue medications—can be controlled with appropriate treatment.
2. Updated epidemiological data, particularly drawn from the report Global Burden of Asthma,are summarized. Although from the perspective of both the patient and society the cost tocontrol asthma seems high, the cost of not treating asthma correctly is even higher.
3. The concept of difficult-to-treat asthma is introduced and developed at various points throughout the report. Patients with difficult-to-treat asthma are often relatively insensitive to the effects of glucocorticosteroid medications, and may sometimes be unable to achieve the same level of control as other asthma patients.
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