New study out today in the New England Journal of Medicine. Several news outlets have stories on it. It's supposed to reduce yearly flare-ups by half. It burns away muscle that can make airways squeeze shut. Called bronchial thermoplasty. It's a catheter set-up that's put down into your central airway, and thermal energy is passed through for about 10 seconds at a time.
Smooth muscle is burned away. Three 40 minute sessions. Mild sedation. Outpatient. Flare-ups were cut by half, and use of inhalers went way down. Interesting, no? Search on the Web and you'll find a lot of info.

From what I have read about this treatment is that it is still experimental, they have not tested it enough to market it too much yet. I would be interested in hearing from someone who has had this done.