Use of peak flow-based self-management plans by adult asthmatic patients

It is intriguing to reflect on the major changes that have occurred over the last few decades in the recom-mended role of peak flow monitoring in the clinical man-agement of asthma. From the situation in the late 1970s, when the use of peak flow recordings as part of an asth-ma self-management strategy was raised hypothetically [1], the recent International Consensus Report on the Diagnosis and Management of Asthma now recommends that peak flow monitoring is essential for the objective assessment of asthma severity, and that a peak flow-based management plan should be used by most asth-matic patients [2]. Despite these recommendations, some remain unconvinced as to the importance of the wide-spread use of peak flow monitoring and its incorpora-tion into asthma self-management plans.