Diagnosis of COPD before cardiac surgery.

We recently performed a retrospective study of the utility of respiratory function tests prior to cardiac surgery at our hospital. The study aimed to identify whether an association exists between pre-operative respiratory function tests and post-operative outcomes. The study also aimed to determine how the definition of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) by Global Initiative in Chronic Obstructive Lung Disease (GOLD) [1] or by lower limit of normal (LLN) [2] may alter peri-operative management.