A five-item questionnaire - the Asthma Control Test (ACT) to help physicians and patients assess the level of asthma control-has been launched by GlaxoSmithKline on the occasion of World Asthma Day 2006.

According to the company release, the ACT helps quickly assess a patient's level of asthma control over 4 weeks just prior to the test and assigns a numerical score. The test encourages clear and concise communication between a patient and his doctor, it may be conducted with or without a lung function test which may not be possible during routine visits to the physician.

"The extent of asthma control in Indian patients, as judged by symptomatic improvements and the need for rescue medication, is currently suboptimal. There is a definite scope to improve this significantly, thereby enabling patients to lead a better quality of life. The ACT is an easy to administer, reliable and clinically validated tool that allows the physician-patient team to work together towards achieving total control of asthma," said Dr. Sadhna Joglekar, Vice President, Medical Affairs and Regulatory, GlaxoSmithKline India.

The five questions that form the ACT are simple and check for the frequency and severity of symptoms, their impact on daily life and medication use. The benefit of ACT is in the scientifically designed and validated scoring system that helps patients evaluate their current level of control in comparison to what is achievable. The ACT is endorsed by the American Lung Association, claimed the release.

World Asthma Day is an annual event organized by the Global Initiative for Asthma (GINA) that works towards improving the lives of people with asthma all over the globe. World Asthma Day 2006 will be observed on 2 May and will focus on the theme - "The Unmet Needs of Asthma".

Around 100-150 million people around the globe suffer from asthma. India has 15-20 million asthmatics approximately and rough estimates show 10-15% prevalence in children between 5-11 years of age, the release says.