The contribution of beta2-adrenergic receptor (beta 2-AR) gene poly-morphisms to the development of asthma in the population is uncertain. We performed a meta-analysis to investigate the association between beta 2-AR polymorphisms and asthma risk and responses to treatments with different drugs. We searched ISI, Medline (Ovid), PubMed, CNKI, Wanfang, and Weipu databases and identified relevant literature reports. Statistical analysis was performed by using the software Revman 5.0 (Cochrane Collaboration, www.cochrane.org) and Stata 12.0 (Stata Corp, College Station, TX, USA, www.stata.com). A total of 61 studies including 45 case-controls, 10 cohorts, and 6 randomly controlled trials were subjected to our meta-analysis. Our results indicated that polymorphisms of beta 2-AR were not a major risk factor for the development of asthma. In the subgroup analysis by age and ethnicity, no significant associations were found among asthma patients when comparing homozygotic Arg/Arg with homozygotic Gly/Gly patients. Results from other comparative genetic models also indicated the lack of associations between this polymorphism and asthma risks. Patients with the Arg16Gly genotype might not benefit from treatments with long-acting beta-agonist (LABA) coupled with inhaled corticosteroid (ICS), ICS alone, LABA alone, or short-acting beta-agonist (SABA). Polymorphisms of beta 2-AR re not a major risk factor for the development of asthma. The results of study also show a poor correlation of therapeutic responses with beta 2-AR polymorphism.