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COPD statistics
The statistics on COPD can be rather frightening. But keep in mind that
if you or someone you love has COPD, the symptoms may be reduced
through proper care and a treatment program. So, the most important thing is to stop smoking, catch the disease in its early stages, and stick to the treatment program your healthcare professional prescribes.
incidence
Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease (COPD) is an umbrella term used to describe
airflow obstruction that is associated with two related disorders of the respiratory
system: chronic bronchitis and/or emphysema associated with airflow obstruction.
- An estimated 16 million Americans are diagnosed with COPD.
- It is likely that an additional 14 million or more COPD cases (those in patients
with minimal or no symptoms at all) are undiagnosed. Thus, the true prevalence
of COPD may be as high as 30 to 35 million cases.
mortality rates/trends
- COPD is the fourth leading cause of death in the United States
for people ages 65 to 84, and it is the fifth leading cause of death for people ages 45 to 64 and
those age 85 and older.
- More than 100,000 Americans died of COPD in 1997.
economic impact of COPD
- The annual cost to the nation for COPD in 2000 was approximately $30.4 billion, including
$14.7 billion in direct expenditures for medical services, $6.5 billion in
indirect morbidity costs, and $9.2 billion in costs related to premature mortality.
- In 1997, COPD accounted for:
- 13.4 million office visits to doctors
- 634,000 hospitalizations for which COPD was the first-listed discharge
diagnosis
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