COPD Not Just A Disease Of The Lungs

Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease (COPD) can no longer be judged as only a disease of the lungs, say authors of an article in The Lancet. Researchers propose to add the term chronic systemic inflammatory syndrome to the diagnosis of COPD to reflect the frequent complex chronic comorbidities. The most common comorbidities associated with COPD are skeletal muscle abnormalities, high blood pressure, diabetes, coronary artery disease, heart failure, lung infections, cancer, and pulmonary vascular disease. The authors say: "Chronic comorbid diseases affect health outcomes in COPD; in fact patients with COPD mainly die of non-respiratory disorders such as cardiovascular disease or cancer."