[Description of a sample of patients with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease treated at hospital-supervised respiratory clinics at primary care centers].
OBJECTIVE
To study the general characteristics, health perception and limitations of patients with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) treated at respiratory clinics at primary care centers staffed by pulmonologists from our hospital service.


METHODS
The study was carried out at 5 primary care centers that enrolled the patients consecutively. Questionnaires were used to collect information on sociodemographic aspects, perception of health, and limitations to activities of daily living. We also collected information on the treatments patients were receiving and comorbidities. Spirometry was also performed.


RESULTS
Six hundred eleven patients with a mean age of 67.2 years were included in the study; 97.7% were male. The most common comorbidities were spinal column pathology (43%) and osteoarthritis (37%). The mean forced expiratory volume in 1 second (FEV1) was 1.37 L and FEV1% was 49.7% of predicted. Medications taken for COPD were mainly beta-adrenergics and anticholinergics; 66% of patients used inhaled steroids. The majority of patients (52.7%) referred to their health as fair and 59.9% declared having some degree of limitation to their activities of daily living which they attributed to their respiratory disease. Statistical differences were found between the degree of limitation and the degree of dyspnea (P<.0001), perception of health (P<.0001), and FEV1 (P=.001).


CONCLUSIONS
Our study outlines the general characteristics of COPD patients and shows that dyspnea is closely related to the perception patients have of their degree of limitation.
Esteban
C
C
Servicio de Neumología. Hospital Galdakao. Vizcaya. España. cristobal_esteban@yahoo.es
Moraza
J
J
Aburto
M
M
Quintana
J M
JM
Capelastegui
A
A
D000368:Aged; D002391:Catchment Area, Health; D005260:Female; D006761:Hospitals; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D029424:Pulmonary Disease, Chronic Obstructive / Q000628:therapy*; D011788:Quality of Life; D013030:Spain