Objective: To determine, based on international guidelines for asthma management, the appropriateness of the treatment that the Unified Health Care System provides to patients with asthma. Methods: This was a cross-sectional study involving patients suspected of having asthma and referred to the Pulmonology Clinic of the Federal University of Minas Gerais Hospital das Clínicas, Brazil, between November of 2006 and October of 2007. Results: A total of 102 patients were included, and 70 were diagnosed with asthma. The previous treatment was consistent with the guidelines in 18.6% of the patients; 50.0% of the patients had previously been submitted to spirometry, and 34.3% had previously been submitted to PEF. The most frequently prescribed medication was short-acting β2 agonists (90.3%). Conclusions: The results show that the majority of non-specialized physicians working within the public health care system do not manage the treatment of patients with asthma in accordance with the guidelines. This situation calls for continuing medical education programs that prioritize primary care.

Keywords: Asthma; Guideline adherence; Therapeutics; Public health.

Objective: To evaluate whether the use of inhaled albuterol via a metered-dose inhaler with a large-volume spacer with antistatic treatment modifies the bronchodilator test results when compared with the usual technique (no spacer). Methods: A prospective study involving 24 patients, 18-45 years of age, clinically suspected of having asthma, and under treatment at the Outpatient Pulmonary Clinic of the Federal University of Minas Gerais Hospital das Clínicas, located in the city of Belo Horizonte, Brazil. All of the patients underwent two bronchodilator tests: one with and one without the use of a large-volume spacer. Results: There was no significant difference in the variation of FEV1 prior to and after bronchodilator use between the two techniques (mean FEV1 = 0.01 L; 95% CI: −0.05 to 0.06; p = 0.824). No statistically significant difference was found between the two techniques regarding the qualitative results on the bronchodilator test (p = 1.00). There was concordance between the techniques in terms of the bronchodilator test results (kappa coefficient = 0.909; p < 0.005). Conclusions: According to the results of this study, the use of large-volume spacers does not significantly modify bronchodilator test results.

Keywords: Asthma; Spirometry; Inhalation spacers.