Asthma in the elderly: a brief report.

Asthma in the elderly may present difficult management problems. We reviewed 46 elderly patients with corticosteroid dependent asthma who have been managed on our ambulatory service for an average of nine years. We present our therapeutic regimens which resulted in better control for the majority of patients. The goals of therapy were control of asthma to prevent status asthmaticus which is potentially fatal asthma. In those patients who did not improve, inability to comply with our regimens was a major factor.