[Choice of basic therapy for asthma in real clinical practice]

According to the Global Initiative for Asthma, the treatment of asthma should be mainly based on its control that encompasses symptom control and exacerbation risk reduction. Control-based treatment contributes to decreases in the frequency of exacerbations, the incidence of drug side effects, the needs of asthmatic patients for emergency care, and the number of their visits to a doctor and hospitalizations, resulting in a reduction of direct health care costs of asthma. Drugs for the basic therapy of asthma are chosen on the basis of evidence for their efficacy and safety and the view of availability and cost of treatment. In case of poor asthma control it is important to reveal its causes and to change basic therapy according to the individual needs of the patient. A major role in the achievement of asthma control is assigned to a combination of inhaled glucocorticosteroids (ICS) and long-acting β2-agonists. Combined medications are prescribed to asthma patients in accordance with the daily ICS dose required to achieve asthma control.