Abstract
Asthma is a systemic inflammatory disease manifested most often as episodic dyspnea
with wheeze or cough. It is the pulmonary manifestation of an immunoregulatory imbalance
that involves the release of pro-inflammatory cytokines into the airway by either
IgE-mediated or other poorly understood immunologic mechanisms. Efforts are currently
underway to identify asthma susceptibility genes that will allow office-based internists
of the future to determine a genetic risk profile to identify asthma susceptibility
and risk factors before it occurs. Present therapies allow management of the great
majority of adults with asthma such that these patients can have normal lifestyles.
Keywords
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Article info
Footnotes
Richard D. deShazo, MD, Section Editor
Identification
Copyright
© 2006 Elsevier Inc. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.
