title: Clinical characteristics, management in real world practice and long-term survival among COPD patients of Northern Thailand COPD club members.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  To assess the baseline clinical characteristics, management, and long-term survival of hospital-based COPD patients in the northern part of Thailand.
  
  
  METHODS
  One hundred and ninety five hospital-based COPD patients from community and provincial hospitals in the northern part of Thailand were recruited between May and November 2002. They were followed up for 45 months for survival.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Most of them (71.3%) were in the advanced stage and 41.8% were undernourished. Only a small fraction of the advanced stage patients (25.7%) estimated their dyspnea severity correctly with the disease stages. The frequency of the exacerbations increases as the disease become more severe. Only 23.7% of the advanced stage patients had received regular bronchodilator therapy. No patients had received pulmonary rehabilitation and long-term oxygen therapy. The 45 months survival was 75.6% in all patients. The severe group with low BMI had significantly lower survival than the one with normal BMI (67.7% vs. 89.8%, p = 0.040).
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Most COPD patients in the northern part of Thailand were in the advanced stage. They were commonly undernourished and exacerbated but still under treated according to standard treatment guidelines. BMI tends to influence the long-term survival of the advanced stage patients.
authors.affiliation: Department of Medicine, Faculty of Medicine, Chiang Mai University, Thailand. cpothira@mail.med.cmu.ac.th
authors.forename: Chaicharn
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Pothirat
authors.forename: Nittaya
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Phetsuk
authors.forename: Athavudh
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Deesomchok
authors.forename: Theerakorn
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Theerakittikul
authors.forename: Chaiwat
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Bumroongkit
authors.forename: Chalerm
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Liwsrisakun
authors.forename: Juthamas
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Inchai
mesh_terms: D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D015992:Body Mass Index; D001993:Bronchodilator Agents / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D004417:Dyspnea; D005260:Female; D006760:Hospitalization; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D009938:Organizations; D029424:Pulmonary Disease, Chronic Obstructive / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000401:mortality* / Q000628:therapy*; D012720:Severity of Illness Index; D012907:Smoking; D015996:Survival Rate; D017741:Survivors; D013785:Thailand / Q000453:epidemiology
chemical_list: D001993:Bronchodilator Agents