[Endoscopic asthma therapy. Sense and nonsense].

In this review a new therapeutic procedure, named bronchial thermoplasty, for patients suffering from asthma will be discussed. The technology targets the smooth airway muscles, which play an important role especially during an acute asthma attack. By means of thermal energy the muscles are destroyed and the contractility minimized. Initial studies demonstrated the effectiveness of this new approach; in particular, the number of symptom-free days or the frequency of exacerbation could be positively influenced. However, a short-term increase in morbidity due to bronchoscopy is to be expected. Further trials are needed to investigate the value of this method, particularly with regard to long-term effects.