Family therapy and childhood asthma: Does it help?: Background and review of controlled studies

Abstract

Controlled studies of family therapy for asthma in children are reviewed. First, the different methods of monitoring the efficacy of asthma treatment are summarized. Secondly, the work from the Philadelphia Child Guidance Clinic is reported: this is a noncontrolled but innovative and very influential study of structural family therapy. Thirdly, an account is given of two controlled studies, one British and one Swedish. In the British study family therapy was shown to increase respiratory function in the asthmatic children, and in the Swedish study a significant improvement in general pediatric assessment was seen. Fourthly, we discuss how further studies can not only improve treatment for asthma in children but also give an opportunity for comparing different family therapy methods.

Key Words:

• Childhood
• Family systems medicine
• Family therapy