Halpern M T, Musin A, Sondhi S
Exponent Inc., Alexandria, VA 22314, USA.
Respir Med. 2003 Mar;97 Suppl C:S15-22. doi: 10.1016/s0954-6111(03)80021-5.
Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) is a condition characterized by progressive airflow limitation, which causes considerable morbidity and mortality worldwide. Yet the burden of COPD is poorly recognized, and the disease remains an inadequately managed health problem. Few studies have attempted to quantify the impact of the disease on patient health, the healthcare system and society as a whole. This provided the rationale for Confronting COPD in North America and Europe, the first large-scale international survey of the burden of COPD. This paper describes how quantitative measures of healthcare resource utilization and workplace productivity loss were derived from patient responses to the Confronting COPD survey, to investigate the country-specific impact of COPD on the healthcare system and society. The aim of this analysis is to inform countries of the economic impact of the condition, and demonstrate the need for better COPD treatment to improve health and reduce the sizeable burden of this disease.
慢性阻塞性肺疾病（COPD）是一种以进行性气流受限为特征的疾病，在全球范围内导致相当高的发病率和死亡率。然而，COPD的负担尚未得到充分认识，该疾病仍然是一个管理不善的健康问题。很少有研究试图量化该疾病对患者健康、医疗系统以及整个社会的影响。这为北美和欧洲的“直面慢性阻塞性肺疾病”（Confronting COPD）研究提供了理论依据，这是首次对慢性阻塞性肺疾病负担进行的大规模国际调查。本文描述了如何根据患者对“直面慢性阻塞性肺疾病”调查的回答得出医疗资源利用和工作场所生产力损失的量化指标，以研究慢性阻塞性肺疾病在各国对医疗系统和社会的影响。该分析的目的是让各国了解该疾病的经济影响，并表明需要更好地治疗慢性阻塞性肺疾病以改善健康状况并减轻这种疾病的巨大负担。
