Asthma is the most common chronic disease of the respiratory system in childhood. The prevalence of asthma is 1 to 35% in different countries. Current guidelines of asthma management in children have been prepared as the PRACTALL Consensus Report and published by the European Academy of Allergology and Clinical Immunology this year. Risk factors for asthma are: atopy, male sex, obesity, exposure to allergens, certain infections, irritants. The choice of diagnostic procedures depends on age – spirometry as the most reliable method can be successfully performed from 6 years of age. The younger the child is the more often clinical criteria are useful in asthma diagnosis. The treatment of the asthmatic child relies on anti-inflammatory drugs and bronchodilators.