The goal of this study was to evaluate a self-management education program for asthmatics. This was a case-controlled retrospective study with a "1 year before and 1 year after" assessment of the proposed education program. It was carried out in the Quebec City metropolitan area, tertiary-center setting. The intervention group included 42 patients, 14 men and 28 women, aged 15-71 years. A control group of 42 patients was matched for age, sex, and medication needs. Neither of the 2 groups had previously received structured asthma education. The intervention group received 3 training sessions on asthma and its treatment, the use of action plans and self-measurement of peak expiratory flow, and was offered individual teaching by a specialized educator or telephone consultation. Evaluation of asthma knowledge was made before and after the teaching sessions and 1 year later. The control group received their usual care. The primary clinical outcome measures included frequency of asthma-related emergency-room (ER) visits, hospitalizations, absenteeism from work, and quality of life, measured 1 year prior to initiation of the educational program and for 1 year after, using questionnaires, chart reviews, and interviews. The control group was evaluated only during the last year of the study. Knowledge of asthma and its management was significantly improved immediately after the program and 1 year later (both p < 0.001).(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)