Fatal and Near-Fatal Asthma

OF all of the medical emergencies that confront practicing physicians, asthma is the one most often dealt with in accordance with the adage "familiarity breeds contempt." Because asthma is such a common disease and is so readily reversed with treatment, many health care professionals, and even some patients, tend to view acute exacerbations of this illness as annoyances that will pass rather than as potentially life-threatening events. Unfortunately, as shown by Molfino et al.1 and by O'Hollaren and associates2 in this issue of the Journal, this disease, for reasons not yet understood, can place the lives of affected persons . . .