Worldwide burden of COPD in high- and low-income countries. Part II. Burden of chronic obstructive lung disease in Latin America: the PLATINO study.
METHODS
Five Latin American cities: São Paulo, Brazil; Mexico City, Mexico; Montevideo, Uruguay; Santiago, Chile; Caracas, Venezuela.


OBJECTIVE
To describe the burden of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) in Latin America.


METHODS
This is a multicentre study. Post-bronchodilator spirometry was used and the main outcome measure was FEV(1)/FVC < 0.7 (fixed ratio criterion). Global Obstructive Lung Disease (GOLD) stages were also analysed.


RESULTS
The combined population aged > or =40 years in the five countries included in the study was approximately 85.3 million. Of these, it was estimated that 12.2 million have airflow obstruction, which corresponds to our prevalence estimate of 14.3%. The proportion of subjects in Stages II-IV of the GOLD classification was 5.6%. Risk factors presenting the highest aetiological fractions for COPD were age, current smoking, indoor exposure to coal and exposure to dust in the workplace. Smoking, the modifiable factor with the strongest aetiological fraction for COPD, affects 29.2% of adults aged > or =40 years in these cities, corresponding to approximately 25 million smokers in this age group.


CONCLUSIONS
Prevention of smoking and exposure to pollutants, such as coal and dust, are the interventions most likely to succeed against COPD in Latin America. The information obtained by a collaborative study has been vast and encouraging for other similar studies.
Post-graduate Programme in Epidemiology, Federal University of Pelotas, Pelotas, Brazil. anamene@terra.com.br
A M B
AM
Menezes
R
R
Perez-Padilla
P C
PC
Hallal
J R
JR
Jardim
A
A
Muiño
M V
MV
Lopez
G
G
Valdivia
J
J
Pertuze
M
M
Montes de Oca
C
C
Tálamo
D000328:Adult; D017281:Cost of Illness; D019049:Developed Countries / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D003906:Developing Countries / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007843:Latin America / Q000453:epidemiology; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D029424:Pulmonary Disease, Chronic Obstructive / Q000453:epidemiology*