BACKGROUND The association between disease markers and health status (HS) overtime is unclear. The aim of this study was to verify the predictors of HS at baseline and after three years in Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease (COPD) patients. METHODS Ninety-five consecutive COPD patients (66% male, age = 67 ± 9 y, FEV1 = 58 ± 23%) underwent the following evaluations at baseline and after thr...

OBJECTIVE To determine if there is a correlation between the BODE Index and variables assessed during the Activities of Daily Living assessment, performance on lower limber tests, and peripheral muscle impairment of the upper limb in patients with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease. MATERIALS AND METHODS Ten men (aged 58 to 80 years old) with moderate to very severe obstruction were evalua...

Health-related quality of life (HRQOL) scales are tools of great interest in chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD). While currently available therapeutic measures do not noticeably improve lung function parameters, they can lead to an improvement of symptoms refl ected in patient quality of life. HRQOL scales could therefore be used to justify a particular treatment even in the absence o...

Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) is defined by persistent airflow limitation that is usually progressive [1], and its severity has long been classified using forced expiratory volume in 1 s (FEV1) % predicted. Although levels of FEV1 were often reported to predict mortality, the observation that other pulmonary and extrapulmonary variables also predicted mortality led to the develop...

BACKGROUND Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) is a major cause of morbidity in the elderly population. COPD leads to a reduced health-related quality of life (HRQL), but the factors which contribute to this are not well understood. A better understanding of the factors which determine HRQL should lead to an improved care for such patients. OBJECTIVES The purpose of this study was to...