SYMPTOMS GOALS OF GINA AND THE NIH TOTALLY CONTROLLED WELL CONTROLLED

Research question Is asthma control, as defi ned by the Global Initiative for Asthma1 and the National Institutes of Health2 (Table 1), better achieved using an escalating dose of fl uticasone propionate alone (F) or using fl uti-casone in combination with the long-acting beta-2 agonist salmeterol (F/S)? Type of article and design One-year, stratified, randomized, double-blind, parallel-group study involving patients recruited from general practice and hospital-based clinics. Relevance to family physicians Asthma is one of the most common chronic dis-eases managed by family physicians. Many guide-lines recommend treating asthma patients with inhaled corticosteroids (ICS) combined with long-acting beta-2 agonists.1-3 Studies have shown that combination therapy is associated with better asthma control than higher doses of ICS alone are.4,5 Th is study is unique in that it attempts to determine whether guideline-defined asthma control can be achieved (using F alone or F/S) in patients with varying disease severity, including patients managed in primary care