Asthma-COPD Overlap Prevalent in 18.1% of Asthma Patients
Patients with both asthma and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) often experience asthma-COPD overlap (AOC), according to a recent study. These patients have worse lung function compared to those with only asthma or COPD.
In the cross-sectional population study, researchers assessed the prevalence and characteristics of 181 patients with ACO, 89 patients with only COPD, 651 patients with only asthma, and 1036 healthy individuals. ACO was defined as a diagnosis of asthma with clinical signs of asthma symptoms at examination and a forced expiratory volume 1 (FEV1)/ forced vital capacity ratio less than 0.7.
________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
RELATED CONTENT
Asthma/COPD Overlap Associated with Lung Function in Childhood
Study Defines Subgroups Within Asthma/COPD Overlap
________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
ACO was prevalent in 3.4% of patients (n=1177) included in the study, and was prevalent in 18.1% of patients (n=138) with asthma.
Of the patients with ACO, 54% were women and the mean age was 59 years. This was between the age and gender distribution of asthma and COPD (mean age 45 years and 62% women, and 62 years and 41% women, respectively). Ever-smoking was reported by 71% of patients with ACO, by 48% of patients with asthma only, and by 74% of patients with COPD only.
Patients with ACO had worse lung function compared with patients with only asthma or COPD. Likewise, patients with ACO reported more respiratory symptoms and had more respiratory-related emergency room visits compared with patients only asthma or COPD.
“ACO is present in 3.4% of the population and common among subjects with both asthma and COPD,” the researchers concluded. “Subjects with ACO had worse lung function and more symptoms than subjects with asthma or COPD only.”
—Melissa Weiss
Reference:
Ekerljung L, Mincheva R, Hagstad S, et al. Prevalence, clinical characteristics and morbidity of the asthma-COPD overlap in a general population sample [published online July 11, 2017]. J Asthma. http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/02770903.2017.1339799.