Extrapolation of management strategies based on results from predominantly adult asthma studies frequently occurs in paediatric asthma despite increasing evidence that paediatric asthma and, in particular, pre-school recurrent wheeze are very different disease entities. Response to medications in paediatric subjects is often different from that seen in their older adolescent and adult counterparts.

In this update, we discussed recent studies that have had important implications for future paediatric asthma management. The overuse of combination inhaled steroid and long-acting beta(2) agonist inhalers in paediatric asthma despite ongoing safety concerns is an increasing trend in paediatric asthma, and recent evidence has helped clarify how they should be used in children. Other aspects discussed include the role of oral corticosteroids in pre-school viral-induced wheeze and the utility of leukotriene receptor antagonists in exercise-induced asthma.