[Asthma and sleep].

In asthmatics, nocturnal cough and dyspnea are much more common than generally known. Therefore, patients with asthma must be asked specifically whether they suffer from symptoms of asthma at night. Usually, nocturnal wheezing is a sign of a badly controlled asthma. Nocturnal bronchoconstriction appears to be an exaggeration of the normal circadian changes in airway calibre. The cause of this exaggeration is not well understood, and it's origin is presumably multifactorial. Careful treatment of nocturnal asthma is particularly important because many deaths due to asthma occur at night and because regular disturbance of sleep impairs performance during the day. Inhaled corticosteroids and beta 2 agonists, especially the new long-acting beta agonists, are first-line drugs for therapy.