Bronchial asthma occurs independently from gender and in all age groups belonging to the frequent diseases with a high demand for treatment. A part of those affected suffer from comorbid mental burden and disorders. The review analyses studies investigating the prevalence of mental burden and disorders in patients with bronchial asthma. The database MEDLINE was searched for studies published from 1980 to 2002. Patients with bronchial asthma frequently show mood and anxiety disorders, with prevalence rates up to 41 % and 52 %. There is no significant correlation between the severity of asthma and the existence of a mental burden or disorder. However, persons with difficult-to-treat asthma (brittle asthma) show more mental burden than patients with controllable symptoms. Compliant patients show a lower prevalence rate of depressive burden than noncompliant patients. The reviewed studies are very heterogeneous with respect to their methodology and the investigated samples limiting the interpretation of their results significantly. In the future more well-designed epidemiological studies have to be performed to achieve valid and representative conclusions about the prevalence rates of mental burden and disorders in patients with bronchial asthma.