United States audit of asthma therapy.

While variations observed in the approach to treatment among specialists in the United States may be partly related to differences in the types of patients seen, the differences are more likely related to a varied level of awareness among the specialties regarding new concepts of asthma therapy. A heightened awareness in the US of the results of therapeutic interventions often tried in other countries for years prior to their introduction in the US can benefit asthma patients by hastening the adoption of therapeutic advances by physicians in this country. Education of physicians and their patients is essential to improving the quality of life and survival in asthma patients. Physicians must inform patients and their families of the critical importance of prophylactic care and aggressive early intervention at the first sign of an exacerbation in order to once again achieve a declining mortality rate in individuals with asthma.