Health Status and Mortality in Elderly COPD Patients
Author Information
Author(s): Conte Maria E, Pedone Claudio, Forastiere Francesco, Bellia Vincenzo, Antonelli-Incalzi Raffaele
Primary Institution: Università Campus Biomedico, Roma, Italy
Hypothesis
Do disease-specific health status measures and multidimensional assessments have comparable prognostic value in elderly COPD patients?
Conclusion
A disease-specific health status index is a better predictor of death than a multidimensional assessment in elderly outpatients with mild-moderate COPD.
Supporting Evidence
- Pulmonary function worsened with higher SGRQ or MDA scores.
- Cognitive function was not associated with SGRQ scores.
- A poor agreement was found between the SGRQ and MDA classification systems.
Takeaway
This study found that a specific health measure can better predict if older COPD patients will die compared to a general health assessment.
Methodology
Data from the Salute Respiratoria nell'Anziano study was analyzed, focusing on 449 elderly patients with bronchial obstruction.
Potential Biases
Potential misclassification of causes of death and underrepresentation of women in the study sample.
Limitations
The study had a lower representation of severe COPD stages and a significant percentage of participants were lost to follow-up.
Participant Demographics
77.3% men, mean age 73.1 years.
Statistical Information
P-Value
0.001
Confidence Interval
1.14 – 3.02
Statistical Significance
p<0.05
Digital Object Identifier (DOI)
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