Skip to main page content
U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Dot gov

The .gov means it’s official.
Federal government websites often end in .gov or .mil. Before sharing sensitive information, make sure you’re on a federal government site.

Https

The site is secure.
The https:// ensures that you are connecting to the official website and that any information you provide is encrypted and transmitted securely.

Access keys NCBI Homepage MyNCBI Homepage Main Content Main Navigation
Observational Study
. 2014 Jun 19:14:102.
doi: 10.1186/1471-2466-14-102.

Co-morbidities are the key nominators of the health related quality of life in mild and moderate COPD

Jukka Koskela  1 , Maritta Kilpeläinen, Henna Kupiainen, Witold Mazur, Harri Sintonen, Marike Boezen, Ari Lindqvist, Dirkje Postma, Tarja Laitinen
Affiliations
Observational Study

Co-morbidities are the key nominators of the health related quality of life in mild and moderate COPD

Jukka Koskela et al. BMC Pulm Med. .

Abstract

Background: Co-morbidities are common in chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD). We assessed the contribution of common co-morbidities on health related quality of life (HRQoL) among COPD patients.

Methods: Using both generic (15D) and respiratory-specific (AQ20) instruments, HRQoL was assessed in a hospital based COPD population (N = 739, 64% males, mean age 64 years, SD 7 years) in this observational study with inferential analysis. The prevalence of their co-morbidities was compared with those of 5000 population controls. The patients represented all severity stages of COPD and the patterns of common concomitant disorders differed between patients.

Results: Co-morbidities such as psychiatric conditions, alcohol abuse, cardiovascular diseases, and diabetes were more common among COPD patients than in age and gender matched controls. Psychiatric conditions and alcohol abuse were the strongest determinants of HRQoL in COPD and could be detected by both 15D (Odds Ratio 4.7 and 2.3 respectively) and AQ20 (OR 2.0 and 3.0) instruments. Compared to respiratory specific AQ20, generic 15D was more sensitive to the effects of comorbidities while AQ20 was slightly more sensitive for the low FEV1. FEV1 was a strong determinant of HRQoL only at more severe stages of disease (FEV1 < 40% of predicted). Poor HRQoL also predicted death during the next five years.

Conclusions: The results suggest that co-morbidities may impair HRQoL at an early stage of the disease, while bronchial obstruction becomes a significant determinant of HRQoL only in severe COPD.

PubMed Disclaimer

References

    1. Agusti A, Soriano JB. COPD as a systemic disease. COPD. 2008;5(2):133–138. doi: 10.1080/15412550801941349. doi: 10.1080/15412550801941349; 10.1080/15412550801941349. - DOI - PubMed
    1. Fabbri LM, Luppi F, Beghe B, Rabe KF. Complex chronic comorbidities of COPD. Eur Respir J. 2008;31(1):204–212. doi: 10.1183/09031936.00114307. doi: 10.1183/09031936.00114307; 10.1183/09031936.00114307. - DOI - PubMed
    1. van Manen JG, Bindels PJ, IJzermans CJ, van der Zee JS, Bottema BJ, Schade E. Prevalence of comorbidity in patients with a chronic airway obstruction and controls over the age of 40. J Clin Epidemiol. 2001;54(3):287–293. doi: 10.1016/S0895-4356(01)00346-8. - DOI - PubMed
    1. MacNee W. Systemic inflammatory biomarkers and co-morbidities of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease. Ann Med. 2013;45(3):291–300. doi: 10.3109/07853890.2012.732703. doi: 10.3109/07853890.2012.732703; 10.3109/07853890.2012.732703. - DOI - PubMed
    1. Sin DD, Anthonisen NR, Soriano JB, Agusti AG. Mortality in COPD: role of comorbidities. Eur Respir J. 2006;28(6):1245–1257. doi: 10.1183/09031936.00133805. doi: 10.1183/09031936.00133805. - DOI - PubMed

Publication types