Psychological treatment of asthma: effectiveness of a self-management program with and without relaxation training

Twenty-seven asthmatic children were allocated to three experimental conditions. The first group received an asthma self-management program; the second group received the same program together with progressive relaxation training; the third group was maintained initially as a control. The self-management program was effective in increasing the frequency of asthma care behavior, but no significant changes were observed in clinical or pulmonary function variables. The relaxation technique did not improve the efficacy of treatment. When the comparison was restricted to children who displayed a low level of self-care practices, the self-management program proved to be effective in reducing attack duration, negative consequences of asthma for the child, and the level of therapeutic response to attacks.