Managing chronic obstructive pulmonary disease in primary care.
Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) causes significant morbidity in primary care. The main symptoms of COPD are cough and shortness of breath, while the main cause of the disease is smoking. It is a treatable condition, and to ensure best treatment it needs to be differentiated from asthma. Following the publication of guidelines by the British Thoracic Society in 1997, primary care has been given a framework for managing this condition. In primary care, COPD is best managed in a specific COPD clinic. This allows for staff training (both management decisions and techniques of lung infection monitoring), as well as presenting the patient with a therapeutic environment conducive to positive lifestyle education. This article discusses the setting up and running of a COPD clinic in primary care.
Mooney
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Wapping Health Centre, London; and COPD Primary Care Task Force, UK.
D000305:Adrenal Cortex Hormones / Q000627:therapeutic use; D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D000554:Ambulatory Care Facilities; D001993:Bronchodilator Agents / Q000627:therapeutic use; D006801:Humans; D008875:Middle Aged; D017410:Practice Guidelines as Topic; D011320:Primary Health Care / Q000379:methods*; D029424:Pulmonary Disease, Chronic Obstructive / Q000145:classification / Q000628:therapy*; D012955:Societies, Medical; D013147:Spirometry / Q000379:methods; D006113:United Kingdom
D000305:Adrenal Cortex Hormones; D001993:Bronchodilator Agents