What Is the Best Way to Help Patients Self-Manage Asthma?

Guidelines recommend use of self-management interventions for people with asthma; however, interventions can involve varying types of support by healthcare professionals, and little evidence exists to define the level of support required for an intervention to be effective.

In this network meta-analysis of 105 randomized trials, researchers examined models for self-management of asthma in children and adults; the primary endpoints were asthma exacerbations requiring emergency care or hospitalization and quality of life. The authors compared three categories of intervention of varying complexity: multidisciplinary case management involving action planning; regularly supported self-management with more than 2 total hours of consultation at reg…