The National Review of Asthma Deaths (NRAD) came out a decade ago, yet as a nation, we still have the highest asthma death rate in Europe - four times that of Italy or the Netherlands. This is unsurprising, considering many patients still rely on their blue inhalers alone.

On the 28th November the joint National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE), British Thoracic Society (BTS) and Scottish Intercollegiate Guidelines Network (SIGN) will publish their long-awaited single guideline on asthma diagnosis, monitoring and management.

This is a high-level summary of what the new BTS/NICE/SIGN Asthma: diagnosis monitoring and chronic asthma management guideline means for you as a primary healthcare professional and what steps you need to take to implement it effectively. 

It is not a tick box template – all consultations with patients should be approached holistically and tailored specifically to the patient’s needs, requirements and other co-morbidities and situations.

Asthma Guidelines in Practice – A PCRS Consensus is a practical and pragmatic guide for healthcare professionals working in primary and intermediate care.  This guide was commissioned to provide clarity on aspects of diagnosis, management and monitoring of asthma that are uncertain

Corinne Beirne, Advanced Nurse Practitioner and Amanda Roberts, from PCRS’s patient reference group, discuss what constitutes a good asthma review from a patient’s perspective.

2024 marked a pivotal change in the management of asthma in the UK with the publication of a joint British Thoracic Society (BTS), National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) and Scottish Intercollegiate Guidelines Network (SIGN) guideline.

As a summary, this policy statement advocates:

In this inspiring article we learn about the power of storytelling for children and young people suffering from asthma. Asthma is a very common disease, and for some it is a lifelong condition requiring long-term self-management.

In a time of uncertainty and financial pressure, this issue of Primary Care Respiratory Update (PCRU) is a vital resource for anyone working in respiratory care. As Integrated Care Boards across England face significant budget cuts, programmes that have taken years to build are now under threat.

In November 2024 NICE, in collaboration the British Thoracic Society (BTS) and the Scottish Intercollegiate Guidelines Network (SIGN), released guidance NG245.

This year’s conference was a resounding success, cementing its place as a highlight in the PCRS calendar.

The Primary Care Respiratory Society (PCRS) advocates that:

A study published in The Lancet shows that, in 2022, more than 1 billion people in the world are living with obesity. The relationship between obesity and respiratory health is complex, involving mechanical, inflammatory, and metabolic factors.