The following is the summary of “Comparison of National and Global Asthma Management Guiding Documents” published in the January 2023 issue of Respiratory Care by Baker, et al.

Asthma continues to place a significant financial burden on society while being a widespread chronic condition affecting both adults and children. Nearly 30 years ago, the first asthma management guidelines were published regarding care, maintaining asthma control, improving quality of life, preserving normal lung function, minimizing exacerbations, and preventing asthma mortality, the first asthma management guidelines were published. 

The National Asthma Education and Prevention Program (NAEPP) Expert Panel Working Group and the Global Initiative for Asthma Science Committee created the 2 most widely used asthma guidelines today. Both sets of guidelines employ scientific methodology to standardize their process of drawing conclusions and making suggestions from the relevant literature. While the Global Initiative for Asthma regularly releases new guidelines, the United States has not issued any since 2007 until the release of the 2020 National Asthma Education and Prevention Program (Expert Panel Report 4). 

The approaches to managing asthma share many similarities, but notable distinctions exist among them. The primary goal of asthma therapy has switched from emergency care to long-term control. To effectively manage acute and chronic asthma, frontline medical staff, including respiratory therapists, should fully grasp the information presented in these two foundational texts. The major goal of this narrative is to compare and contrast these 2 guiding texts in light of the 6 essential questions stated by the Expert Panel of the National Asthma Education and Prevention Program.

Source: rc.rcjournal.com/content/68/1/114