Considering advances in asthma management, doctors and specialists must lay stress on the fact that patients can control their asthma, live an unrestricted life, and have normal activities.

This was the key message communicated by Dr. Andrew Greening, a renowned international asthma expert, researcher, and author of specialist studies from the University of Edinburgh. He was the key speaker at an interactive session for general practitioners and specialists here. Similar sessions were also held in Karachi and Lahore.

The objective of these sessions was to help educate and enhance learning through latest global data and clinical research for both general practitioners (GPs) and specialists. Prof. Greening called on doctors to consider management of asthma and related diseases in a manner that helps patients avoid getting into any condition necessitating ‘acute healthcare expenses.’ A balance needs to be achieved between cost and healthy living, he emphasised.

Titled ‘Asthma Management Today and Tomorrow,’ the thrust of Prof. Greening’s talk was the achievement of ‘guideline defined control.’ Referring particularly to GINA (Global Initiative for Asthma) guidelines, this session looked at assessing current control and the clinical data of various therapies and their patient outcomes.

Presenting graphic data from the GOAL (Gaining Optimal Asthma Control) study, Prof. Greening invited participants to consider and weigh alternative treatment options for better patient outcomes — classifying three levels of asthma control as Total Control, Well Controlled, and Not Well Controlled. Following on, specialists in asthma and related areas attended the second presentation, ‘The Big Picture in COPD Disease Progression.’ The sessions were largely attended by doctors.

In addition to being president-elect of the British Thoracic Society, Prof. Greening is an active member of the European Respiratory Society and the American Thoracic Society, and former president of the Scottish Thoracic Society. He is also honorary chairman, pulmonary diseases, at Edinburgh University.