Summary: Asthma in the elderly is associated with a more severe course, frequent exacerbations, more than double the number of hospitalizations and higher risk of death. In the elderly the difficulties are associated with the correct performance of diagnostic tests, assessing asthma severity, differential diagnosis, and planning the treatment in the context of the interactions and side effects of drugs. The most common symptoms, such as wheezing and shortness of breath, may not be visible. The lack of randomized studies on the effectiveness of asthma therapy in the elderly means that therapeutic decisions are based on the data and recommendations for younger age groups. The common principles of asthma therapy in the elderly do not differ from those provided for the rest of the population. They underline the need for regular checking of the technique of drug intake. In the case of seniors we should expect a weaker response to the therapy due to observed reduced sensitivity of the β2-mimetic receptors, which reduces the potency of agonists. Among bronchodilators, short-acting β2-agonists are the basic medicines, cholinolytics are a useful alternative. Inhaled corticosteroids control the course of asthma in the elderly and allow the side effects of oral steroids to be avoided. Standard therapy of asthma in seniors is to combine long-acting β2-mimetics and inhaled glucocorticoids in one inhaler.