RT Journal
A1 Calhoun WJ, Boushey HA, Ameredes BT, Asthma Clinical Research Network BASALT Trial Investigators f
T1 STrategies for tailoring asthma treatment in adults—reply
JF JAMA
JO JAMA
YR 2013
FD January 9
VO 309
IS 2
SP 136
OP 137
DO 10.1001/jama.2012.73385
UL http://dx.doi.org/10.1001/jama.2012.73385
AB 
Although the performance characteristics of sputum eosinophils is slightly better than that of exhaled nitric oxide, the penetrance of sputum eosinophil measurements into clinical practice in the United States and in most of the world has been negligible due to the difficulty of establishing reproducible and reliable sputum processing and cytological examination in the clinical setting. Someday sputum measures may be made reproducibly and technically simple enough to be performed routinely in the office setting, but the state of standard clinical technology is not there yet.