Bronchiectasis in Germany: a population-based estimation of disease prevalence.

Bronchiectasis is a chronic and progressive disease, which frequently is associated with a significant symptom burden and which may require intensive treatment. To date, epidemiological data on the prevalence of bronchiectasis in Europe are exceedingly scarce due to a great lack of research [1]. However, these data on disease burden are important in order to inform authorities and to allocate resources in healthcare [2], in particular as bronchiectasis is associated with high healthcare system usage as well as significant morbidity and mortality [3, 4]. The aim of the present study was to estimate the overall prevalence of bronchiectasis in Germany over a 1-year period from a representative sample of routine statutory health insurance claim data, with special attention paid to the distribution of age and sex, and the site of healthcare provision, as well as chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) as a concomitant condition.