Purpose of review: Asthma is a chronic pulmonary inflammatory disease affecting all races, children and adults. The causative or intrinsic development of asthma is diverse, ranging from episodic exposure to environmental insults to physical induction in exercise.
Recent findings: Asthma uniquely manifests in affected individuals as episodes of airway hyper-reactivity, chronic airway obstruction, and inflammation. The diversity in asthmatic phenotypes and the mechanisms that lead to initiation and perpetuation of the lung disease continue to make asthma a challenge to treat, classify, and manage therapeutically.
Summary: This review will focus on the newest of mechanistic insights into asthma development, therapeutic innovations, and clinical applications.