DIFFICULT-TO-TREAT, SEVERE ASTHMA

Abstract

Difficult-to-treat severe asthma constitutes approximately 5-10% of the asthmatic population, and continues to present a considerable therapeutic challenge. Use of the pragmatic definitions over the past 10 years has led to an improved delineation of these patients. This monograph gathers expertise in the paediatric and adult severe asthma fields. Giving rise to a comprehensive edition that summarises what has been achieved in understanding the different phenotypes, their biomarkers and the reasons and mechanisms that underlie difficult-to-treat severe asthma as well as the refractoriness to i. Cover; Guest Editors; Preface; Introduction; Chapter 1- Difficult-to-treat asthma: how serious is the problem and what are the issues?; Chapter 2- Evaluation of the difficult-to-treat severe asthma patient in the clinic; Chpater 3- Treatment adherence and psychosocial factors in sever asthma; Chapter 4 -- Characteristics, definition and phenotypes of severe asthma; Chapter 5 -- Special problems of severe asthma in childhood; Chapter 6 -- Recent developments in the genetics of asthma susceptibility and severity; Chapter 7 -- Pathology, inflamation and cytokines of severe asthma. Chapter 8 -- Allergic and nonallergic factors in severe asthmaChapter 9 -- Asthma exacerbations in relation to sever asthma; Chapter 10 -- Fatal and near-fatal; Chapter 11 -- Fixed airway obstruction in sever asthma; Chapter 12 -- Imaging in severe asthma; Chapter 13 -- Airway physiology and pathophysiology in sever asthma; Chapter 14 -- The upper airways in severe asthma; Chapter 15 -- Epithelial-mesenchymal communication in the pathogenesis of severe asthma; Chapter 16 -- Noninvasive assessment of inflammation in severe asthma; Chapter 17 -- Lipid mediators in severe asthma. Chapter 18 -- Corticosteroids: use and insensitivity insensitivity in severe asthmaChapter 19 -- Bronchodilator therapies for severe asthma; Chapter 20 -- New treatments for severe asthma; Chapter 21 -- Management of difficult-to-treat severe asthma; Chapter 22 -- Severe asthma: the way forward.