title: Evaluation of the chronic obstructive pulmonary disease assessment test in Japanese outpatients.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  The Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease (COPD) Assessment Test (CAT) is a quality-of-life (QOL) questionnaire that proved to correlate with St. George's Respiratory Questionnaire. Correlations between CAT scores and other COPD parameters have not been thoroughly evaluated in Japanese outpatients.
  
  
  METHODS
  Cross-sectional study of 85 outpatients with COPD at a Japanese community-based hospital.
  
  
  METHODS
  We observed 70 men and 15 women, whose average age was 72.0 ± 9.0 years. Mean forced expiratory volume in 1 s (FEV1) (% predicted) was 45.8 ± 14.7%. Mean CAT score was 10.1 ± 7.9 (range: 0-31). We calculated Spearman's rank correlation coefficient for CAT score and the following variables: r=0.81 for 'the Body Mass Index, Airflow Obstruction, Dyspnea and Exercise Capacity Index'; r=-0.05 for body mass index; r=-0.56 for FEV1 (% predicted); r=0.88 for Modified Medical Research Council Dyspnea Scale; r=-0.71 for 6-min walk distance; r=0.68 for 'the Age, Dyspnoea,and Airflow Obstruction Index'; and r=-0.40 for oxygen saturation in artery. Each COPD parameter, except for body mass index, had a significant (P<0.001) correlation with the CAT score.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  The CAT score, which is obtainable by a simple questionnaire originally designed for QOL assessment, had strong correlations with airflow obstruction, dyspnea, exercise tolerance, prognostic index and oxygenation in Japanese outpatients.
authors.affiliation: Department of Internal Medicine and Clinical Immunology, Yokohama City University Graduate School of Medicine, Yokohama, Japan.
authors.forename: Nobuyuki
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Horita
authors.forename: Makiko
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Yomota
authors.forename: Masahiro
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Sasaki
authors.forename: Satoshi
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Morita
authors.forename: Masaharu
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Shinkai
authors.forename: Yoshiaki
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Ishigatsubo
authors.forename: Takeshi
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Kaneko
mesh_terms: D000368:Aged; D003430:Cross-Sectional Studies; D005260:Female; D005500:Follow-Up Studies; D006801:Humans; D007564:Japan / Q000453:epidemiology; D008297:Male; D009017:Morbidity / Q000639:trends; D010045:Outpatients; D011379:Prognosis; D029424:Pulmonary Disease, Chronic Obstructive / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000453:epidemiology; D012129:Respiratory Function Tests / Q000379:methods*; D012189:Retrospective Studies; D012720:Severity of Illness Index; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires
keywords: dyspnea; exercise tolerance; quality of life; questionnaires; spirometry