Asthma is a serious global health problem affecting all age groups. Its prevalence is increasing in many countries, especially among children. Although some countries have seen a decline in hospitalizations and death from asthma, asthma still imposes an unacceptable burden on health care systems, and on society through loss of productivity in the workplace and, especially for pediatric asthma, disruption to the family.

In 1993, the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute collaborated with the World health Organization to convene a workshop that led to a Workshop Report: Global Strategy for Asthma Management and Prevention. This was followed by the establishment of the Global Initiative for Asthma (GINA), a network of individuals, organizations, and public health officials to disseminate information about the care of patients with asthma, and to provide a mechanism to translate scientific evidence into improved asthma care.

The GINA report (Global strategy for asthma management and prevention), has been updated annually since 2002, and publications based on the GINA reports have been translated into many languages. In 2001, GINA initiated an annual World Asthma Day, raising awareness about the burden of asthma, and becoming a focus for local and national activities to educate families and health care professionals about effective methods to manage and control asthma.

In spite of these efforts, and the availability of effective therapies, international surveys provide ongoing evidence for suboptimal asthma control in many countries. It is clear that if recommendations contained within this report are to improve care of people with asthma, every effort must be made to encourage health care leaders to assure availability of, and access to, medications, and to develop means to implement and evaluate effective asthma management programs.

You can read the full 2015 report below and find more info here.

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