[Asthma in elderly--diagnostic and therapeutic difficulties].

Bronchial asthma is a frequent cause of respiratory symptoms in elderly. In majority of cases asthmatic patients develop their disease before the age of 45 years, but sometimes the first episode of asthma occurs after the age of 60 years. Except for pharmacological methods, non-pharmacological therapies are recommended which include education of patients and his family and vaccination for influenza and pneumococcal infections. Two cases of bronchial asthma in patients over 60 years were analyzed. The first case illustrates coexistence of chronic heart-depending circulatory failure, complicated with episode of thromboembolic disease which occurred in the past, obesity and bronchial asthma, in 69 years old man. The second case illustrates 61 years old woman with chronic severe asthma from childhood, rheumatoid arthritis and tuberculous infection of the knee. It is known that evaluation of asthma severity in elderly is more difficult than in young people because of high frequency of comorbidities. An appropriate anti-asthmatic medication and education of patient and his family may enrich quality of live in elderly asthmatics.