Drugs to be used by the Primary Care pediatrician in childhood asthma treatment

Primary Care paediatrician has, in order to manage asthma, much more posibilities than any years ago, following the recommendations of the clinical practice guidelines recently publicated. There are two main therapeutic groups: those medicaments that relief symptoms and those which control the inflammation, a basical component of this disease. Among the reliever ones, short acting beta2-agonists, oxygen and oral steroids are essential medicaments. There are controversies about the utility of anticholinergics and inhaled steroids. In the controller group the main roll is for inhaled steroids, long acting beta2-agonists which have to be used in association with inhaled steroids, and leukotriene receptor antagonists which may be employed alone or in combination with the other. Cromones used years ago in slight asthma are lately in decline. Primary Care paediatrician has to choose among these different medicaments and their combinations. In this way, the clinical practice guidelines publicated by several international and national organisms of various countries, some of them elaborated following evidence based medicine criteria, help us and our patients.