What the Physician Can Do

Some patients may have wanted to read this chapter before any of the other because all patients are most interested in being treated. However, any reader who expect to find concrete suggestions for self-treatment will be disappointed. The biggest mistake any asthmatic patient can make is to try to treat himself, no matter what his source of information. I must make this absolutely clear because I have seen too many patients who tried to treat themselves and barely managed to cope with their disease. A doctor's consultation would have been much more effective. 

This does not, however, mean that I encourage the patient to take or inhale all medications doctors prescribe without knowledge of their effectiveness or side effects. I would like to inform you about the basics of treatment in the following sections.