This site is intended for healthcare professionals

Go to /sign-in page

You can view 5 more pages before signing in

Prognosis

Last reviewed dd mmm yyyy. Last edited dd mmm yyyy

Authoring team

  • if in a middle-aged patient the FEV1 is 1L below the expected value then the patient is very likely to become disabled by airways obstruction unless they stop smoking.
  • if a patient stops smoking then the rate of deterioration of FEV1 reverts back to that which normally would occur with advancing age, thus improving prognosis.
  • there is a mortality rate of 10% per year once the FEV1 approaches 1 litre.
  • prognosis is better if the predominant pathology is that of mucus hypersecretion than those patients in which airways obstruction predominates.
  • if there is the development of cor pulmonale and pulmonary hypertension then the 5 year survival is about 30%.
  • weight loss is associated with considerably increased morbidity and mortality.

NICE guidance suggest that a

  • disability in COPD can be poorly reflected in the FEV1
  • A more comprehensive assessment of severity includes the degree of airflow obstruction and disability, the frequency of exacerbations and the following known prognostic factors:
    • FEV1
    • Smoking status
    • breathlessness (MRC scale)
    • chronic hypoxia and/or cor pulmonale
    • low BMI
    • severity and frequency of exacerbations
    • hospital admissions
    • symptom burden (COPD Assessment Test (CAT) score)
    • exercise capacity (for example, 6-minute walk test)
    • TLCO
    • Whether the person meets the criteria for long-term oxygen therapy and/or home non-invasive ventilation
    • multimorbidity
    • frailty

Reference:


Create an account to add page annotations

Annotations allow you to add information to this page that would be handy to have on hand during a consultation. E.g. a website or number. This information will always show when you visit this page.

The content herein is provided for informational purposes and does not replace the need to apply professional clinical judgement when diagnosing or treating any medical condition. A licensed medical practitioner should be consulted for diagnosis and treatment of any and all medical conditions.

Connect

Copyright 2024 Oxbridge Solutions Limited, a subsidiary of OmniaMed Communications Limited. All rights reserved. Any distribution or duplication of the information contained herein is strictly prohibited. Oxbridge Solutions receives funding from advertising but maintains editorial independence.