Pharmacoepidemiologic study of acute exacerbations of COPD: challenges and opportunities

Abstract

Guideline recommendations for the treatment of acute exacerbations of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease are derived from randomized clinical trials; they usually have a small sample size and are unrepresentative of patient populations. By contrast, observation data represent real-world patient population with large sample sizes and greater generalizability; however, appropriate methodologies are needed to analyze the data and make sound inference. This article reviews the study by Rothberg et al., summarizes the key findings, and extends the discussion to the challenges and opportunities of pharmacoepidemiologic studies in acute exacerbations of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease.