Objective-This pilot study explores the reported symptoms in African Americans and Caucasians with asthma.Methods-Asthma patients in an inner-city pulmonary clinic were given a brief questionnaire of asthma symptoms and the BORG scale, followed by spirometry.Results-African Americans were less likely to report nocturnal awakenings (67% vs. 100%; p = 0.037), complain of dyspnea (33% vs. 75%; p = 0.038), or experience chest pain (13% vs. 75%; p=0.002) than Caucasians.Conclusions-This is the first study to demonstrate that there are clinically significant differences in the reporting of asthma symptoms between African Americans and Caucasians.