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Risk stratification for COPD diagnosis through an active search strategy in primary care

BACKGROUND: The aim of this study was to identify the percentage of undiagnosed patients with COPD through the implementation of an active search strategy in a selected subject population. METHODS: An observational, cross-sectional, multicenter study was conducted in a primary care setting in Spain....

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Detalles Bibliográficos
Autores principales: Marcos, Pedro J, Malo de Molina, Rosa, Casamor, Ricard
Formato: Online Artículo Texto
Lenguaje:English
Publicado: Dove Medical Press 2016
Materias:
Acceso en línea:https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4780180/
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/27042035
http://dx.doi.org/10.2147/COPD.S98659
Descripción
Sumario:BACKGROUND: The aim of this study was to identify the percentage of undiagnosed patients with COPD through the implementation of an active search strategy in a selected subject population. METHODS: An observational, cross-sectional, multicenter study was conducted in a primary care setting in Spain. General practitioners gave their diagnostic impression of COPD (yes/no) on the basis of clinical criteria of subjects with respiratory symptoms and tobacco exposure. Subsequently, post-bronchodilator spirometry and quality-of-life tests were performed. Multivariate logistic regression techniques using receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curves were used to identify the combination of variables that best discriminates COPD. RESULTS: A total of 2,758 patients were screened at 368 primary care centers, of which 1,725 patients were included in the study. Seven hundred and ninety-three patients (46%) were diagnosed with COPD. Clinical judgment resulted in suspected COPD in 1,393 (81%) of the subjects. The best variables to discriminate COPD were a history of lower respiratory tract infections, cough, and dyspnea. This combination identified COPD with a ROC(AUC) of 0.61 denoting a poor discriminative ability. CONCLUSION: Employing an active search strategy leads to a new COPD diagnosis in almost half of the subjects. Screening of COPD with post-bronchodilator spirometry should be considered mandatory for any high-risk subject visiting the general practitioner clinic for any reason.