Anti-inflammatory reliever (AIR) and maintenance-and-reliever therapy (MART) in the management of asthma in people aged 12 years and over

Historically, many people with asthma in Australia have been managed with as-needed short-acting beta₂ agonists (SABA), either alone or as the primary reliever therapy. However, accumulating evidence has demonstrated that SABA-only treatment does not adequately address airway inflammation and is associated with increased risk of exacerbations and poor clinical outcomes (1).

In 2025, the National Asthma Council Australian Asthma Handbook was updated to reflect this evidence and now explicitly recommends against the use of as-needed SABA alone for the management of asthma in adults and adolescents (2).

The revised guidance recommends that all adults and adolescents with asthma receive inhaled corticosteroid (ICS)-containing treatment and identifies an ICS-formoterol pathway, using anti-inflammatory reliever (AIR) therapy or maintenance-and-reliever therapy (MART), as the preferred approach for many patients (2).

This concise, evidence-based educational video module aims to support Australian GPs to understand and implement these guideline changes in everyday practice.