Epidemiology, Anti-Inflammatory Therapy and Future Trends
edited by Mark A. Giembycz, Brian J. O'Connor.
Basel
Birkhäuser Basel : Imprint : Birkhäuser
2000
(vii, 206 pages)
Respiratory pharmacology and pharmacotherapy.
1. Epidemiology of Asthma Mortality --;2. Epidemiology of Childhood Asthma --;3. Is Chronic Use of?2-Agonists Detrimental in the Treatment of Asthma? --;4. Assessment of Airway Inflammation in Asthma Using Non-Invasive Methods --;5. Treatment of Asthma in Children: the Case for Inhaled Corticosteroids as First Line Agents --;6. Treatment of Asthma in Children: the Case Against Inhaled Corticosteroids as First Line Agents --;7. Future Trends in the Use of Corticosteroids in Asthma --;8. Steroid Sparing Therapies in Asthma --;9. Leukotriene Receptor Antagonists and 5-Lipoxygenase Inhibitors in Asthma --;10. Theophylline and New Generation Phosphodiesterase Inhibitors in the Treatment of Asthma.
In the following sections, we will discuss the role of various non-invasive or relatively non-invasive methods to assess airway inflammation in asthma and concentrate on the only direct method of induced sputum examination. In his textbook The Principles and Practice of Medicine, in 1892, Sir William Osler described "bronchial asthma .