Bronchial asthma. A perspective from childhood to adulthood.

Asthma is a greatly underdiagnosed disorder in childhood. Even when recognized, its severity generally is underestimated. It is responsible for much physical, social, and economic hardship due to poor control and inadequate treatment from poor understanding of the disease. Nonallergic factors alone may be of prime importance in the disorder or may act in conjunction with "allergy." Asthma commonly is not "outgrown," although it may become less conspicuous, often to surface overtly in adulthood. It is important to recognize and treat asthma in childhood, not only because of acute disease morbidity and potential mortality but also because of its possible prolonged morbidity in later childhood and in adulthood.