COPD is a treatable disease with increasing prevalence worldwide. Treatment aims to stop disease progression, to improve quality of life, and to reduce exacerbations. We aimed to evaluate the association of the stage of COPD on adherence to inhaled therapy and the relationship between adherence and COPD exacerbations. A retrospective analysis of patients hospitalized for acute exacerbation of COPD in a tertiary care hospital in Upper Austria and discharged with a guideline conform inhaled therapy was performed. Follow-up data on medical utilization was recorded for the subsequent 24 months. Adherence to inhaled therapy was defined according to the percentage of prescribed inhalers dispensed to the patient and classified as complete (> 80%), partial (50–80%) or low (< 50%). Out of 357 patients, 65.8% were male with a mean age of 66.5 years and a mean FEV1 of 55.0%pred. Overall, 35.3% were current smokers, and only 3.9% were never-smokers. In 77.0% inhaled triple therapy (LAMA + LABA + ICS) was prescribed. 33.6% showed complete adherence to their therapy (33.2% in men, 34.4% in women), with a mean age of 67.0 years. Mean medication possession ratio by GOLD spirometry class I – IV were 0.486, 0.534, 0.609 and 0.755, respectively (p = 0.002). Hence, subjects with complete adherence to therapy had a significantly lower FEV1 compared to those with low adherence (49.2%pred. vs 59.2%pred., respectively; p < 0.001). The risk of exacerbations leading to hospitalization was 10-fold higher in GOLD spirometry class IV compared to GOLD spirometry class I, which was even more evident in multivariate analysis (OR 13.62). Complete adherence to inhaled therapy was only seen in 33.6% and was higher among those with more severe COPD. Not applicable.

There are several reports on underdiagnosis of COPD, while little is known about COPD overdiagnosis and overtreatment. We describe the overdiagnosis and the prevalence of spirometrically defined false positive COPD, as well as their relationship with overtreatment across 23 population samples in 20 countries participating in the BOLD Study between 2003 and 2012. A false positive diagnosis of COPD was considered when participants reported a doctor's diagnosis of COPD, but postbronchodilator spirometry was unobstructed (FEV₁/FVC > LLN). Additional analyses were performed using the fixed ratio criterion (FEV₁/FVC < 0.7). Among 16,177 participants, 919 (5.7%) reported a previous medical diagnosis of COPD. Postbronchodilator spirometry was unobstructed in 569 subjects (61.9%): false positive COPD. A similar rate of overdiagnosis was seen when using the fixed ratio criterion (55.3%). In a subgroup analysis excluding participants who reported a diagnosis of "chronic bronchitis" or "emphysema" (n = 220), 37.7% had no airflow limitation. The site-specific prevalence of false positive COPD varied greatly, from 1.9% in low- to middle-income countries to 4.9% in high-income countries. In multivariate analysis, overdiagnosis was more common among women, and was associated with higher education; former and current smoking; the presence of wheeze, cough, and phlegm; and concomitant medical diagnosis of asthma or heart disease. Among the subjects with false positive COPD, 45.7% reported current use of respiratory medication. Excluding patients with reported asthma, 34.4% of those with normal spirometry still used a respiratory medication. False positive COPD is frequent. This might expose nonobstructed subjects to possible adverse effects of respiratory medication.

COPD prevalence is highly variable and geographical altitude has been linked to it, yet with conflicting results. We aimed to investigate this association, considering well known risk factors. A pooled analysis of individual data from the PREPOCOL-PLATINO-BOLD-EPI-SCAN studies was used to disentangle the population effect of geographical altitude on COPD prevalence. Post-bronchodilator FEV1/FVC below the lower limit of normal defined airflow limitation consistent with COPD. High altitude was defined as >1500 m above sea level. Undiagnosed COPD was considered when participants had airflow limitation but did not report a prior diagnosis of COPD. Among 30,874 participants aged 56.1 ± 11.3 years from 44 sites worldwide, 55.8% were women, 49.6% never-smokers, and 12.9% (3978 subjects) were residing above 1500 m. COPD prevalence was significantly lower in participants living at high altitude with a prevalence of 8.5% compared to 9.9%, respectively (p < 0.005). However, known risk factors were significantly less frequent at high altitude. Hence, in the adjusted multivariate analysis, altitude itself had no significant influence on COPD prevalence. Living at high altitude, however, was associated with a significantly increased risk of undiagnosed COPD. Furthermore, subjects with airflow limitation living at high altitude reported significantly less respiratory symptoms compared to subjects residing at lower altitude. Living at high altitude is not associated with a difference in COPD prevalence after accounting for individual risk factors. However, high altitude itself was associated with an increased risk of undiagnosed COPD.

The burden of symptoms and risk of exacerbations are the main drivers of the overall assessment of the Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease (COPD) and the adequate treatment approaches per current Global Initiative for Chronic Obstructive Lung Disease (GOLD). Physical activity has emerged as both functional outcome and non-pharmacological intervention in COPD patients, despite the lack of standardized measures or guidelines in clinical practice. This study aimed to explore in more depth the 24-h respiratory symptoms, the physical activity level (PAL) and the relationship between these two determinants in stable COPD patients. This was a multinational, multicenter, observational, cross-sectional study conducted in ten European countries and Israel. Dedicated questionnaires for each part of the day (morning, daytime, night) were used to assess respiratory symptoms. PAL was evaluated with self- and interview-reported tools [EVS (exercise as vital sign) and YPAS (Yale Physical Activity Survey)], and physician’s judgement. Patients were stratified in ABCD groups by 2013 and 2017 GOLD editions using the questionnaires currently recommended: modified Medical Research Council dyspnea scale and COPD Assessment Test. The study enrolled 2190 patients (mean age: 66.9 years; male: 70.0%; mean % predicted FEV1: 52.6; GOLD groups II-III: 84.5%; any COPD treatment: 98.9%). Most patients (> 90%) reported symptoms in any part of the 24-h day, irrespective of COPD severity. PAL evaluations showed discordant results between patients and physicians: 32.9% of patients considered themselves completely inactive, while physicians judged 11.9% patients as inactive. By YPAS, the overall study population spent an average of 21.0 h/week performing physical activity, and 68.4% of patients were identified as sedentary. In any GOLD ABCD group, the percentage of inactive patients was high. Our study found negative, weak correlations between respiratory symptoms and self-reported PAL (p < 0.001). Despite regular treatment, the majority of stable COPD patients with moderate to severe disease experienced daily variable symptoms. Physical activity level was low in this COPD cohort, and yet overestimated by physicians. With evidence indicating the negative consequences of inactivity, its adequate screening, a more active promotion and regular assessment of physical activity are urgently needed in COPD patients for better outcomes. NCT03031769 , retrospectively registered, 23 Jan 2017.

Quantitative biomarkers derived from positron-emission tomography/computed tomography (PET/CT) have been suggested as prognostic variables in immune-checkpoint inhibitor (ICI) treated non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC). As such, data for first-line ICI therapy and especially for chemotherapy–ICI combinations are still scarce, we retrospectively evaluated baseline ¹⁸F-FDG-PET/CT of 85 consecutive patients receiving first-line pembrolizumab with chemotherapy (n = 70) or as monotherapy (n = 15). Maximum and mean standardized uptake value, total metabolic tumor volume (MTV), total lesion glycolysis, bone marrow-/and spleen to liver ratio (BLR/SLR) were calculated. Kaplan–Meier analyses and Cox regression models were used to assess progression-free/overall survival (PFS/OS) and their determinant variables. Median follow-up was 12 months (M; 95% confidence interval 10–14). Multivariate selection for PFS/OS revealed MTV as most relevant PET/CT biomarker (p < 0.001). Median PFS/OS were significantly longer in patients with MTV ≤ 70 mL vs. >70 mL (PFS: 10 M (4–16) vs. 4 M (3–5), p = 0.001; OS: not reached vs. 10 M (5–15), p = 0.004). Disease control rate was 81% vs. 53% for MTV ≤/> 70 mL (p = 0.007). BLR ≤ 1.06 vs. >1.06 was associated with better outcomes (PFS: 8 M (4–13) vs. 4 M (3–6), p = 0.034; OS: 19 M (12-/) vs. 6 M (4–12), p = 0.005). In patients with MTV > 70 mL, concomitant BLR ≤ 1.06 indicated a better prognosis. Higher MTV is associated with inferior PFS/OS in first-line ICI-treated NSCLC, with BLR allowing additional risk stratification.