TY - INPR TI - Understanding the impact of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease exacerbations on patient health and quality of life JF - European Journal of Internal Medicine UR - https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ejim.2019.12.014 N1 - This is an open access article under the CC BY-NC-ND license (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/BY-NC-ND/4.0/). A1 - Hurst, JR A1 - Skolnik, N A1 - Hansen, GJ A1 - Anzueto, A A1 - Donaldson, GC A1 - Dransfield, MT A1 - Varghese, P Y1 - 2020/01/16/ AV - public KW - Comorbidity KW - Mental health KW - Mortality KW - Physical functional performance KW - Quality of life KW - Respiratory function tests ID - discovery10090654 N2 - Exacerbations of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) represent a significant clinical problem, and are associated with decreased lung function, worsening quality of life and decreased physical activity levels, with even a single exacerbation having detrimental effects. The occurrence of COPD exacerbations can also have a considerable impact on healthcare costs and mortality rates, with over one-fifth of patients hospitalized for a COPD exacerbation for the first time dying within one year of discharge. This highlights the need for COPD exacerbations to be a major focus in clinical practice. Furthermore, the substantial effect that COPD exacerbations can have on patient mental health should not be underestimated. Despite their clinical importance, COPD exacerbations are poorly recognized and reported by patients, and improving patient understanding and reporting of exacerbations to ensure prompt treatment may minimize their deleterious effects. Renewed focus on improving current clinical practice with support from evidence-based guidelines is required. This also raises a challenge to payors, healthcare systems and government policies to do more to tackle the considerable outstanding burden of COPD exacerbations. ER -