Cytological features and chemiluminescent activity were studied in phagocytes from bronchoalveolar lavage fluid (BALF) sampled from patients with bronchial asthma (BA). A total of 53 patients were examined before and after gaining pharmaceutical control over the disease. Of these patients, 28 were older than 60 years and 25 were younger. The control group included 16 practically healthy persons aged below 60 years. The inflammation process in elderly (>60 years) patients was accompanied by significantly higher contents of neutrophils and lymphocytes and lower contents of alveolar macrophages. The chemiluminescent responses of BALF phagocytes in patients with BA followed the same trend in the two age groups but showed a quantitative difference. Respiratory tract inflammation in elderly patients with BA was characterized by less pronounced recruitment of effector cells and lower chemiluminescent activity of phagocytes in comparison to the younger group of patients.