TY - JOUR

T1 - Age- and gender-based comorbidity categories in general practitioner and pulmonology patients with COPD

AU - Kim-Dorner, Su Jong

AU - Schmidt, Torben

AU - Kuhlmann, Alexander

AU - Graf von der Schulenburg, Johann Matthias

AU - Welte, Tobias

AU - Lingner, Heidrun

N1 - Funding Information: Firstly, we thank all participating practices, the physicians, and the medical staff for their contribution to the BeoNet-Register (BNR) database. Secondly, we thank all colleagues who have supported the register-project especially Dr. M. Wacker, Dr. I. Aumann, and Prof. R. Leidl. Last but not least we are grateful to the technical staff of MUGS and Indamed for their continuous support in the BNR project. The BNR is funded by the Federal Ministry of Education and Research (BMBF) and supported by the national institution of the German Center for Lung Research (Deutschen Zentrums fuer Lungenforschung (DZL). The BNR and the current study is registered with the German Clinical Trials Register under DRKS00005822. The MHH ethics committee approval is under No. 1481-2012.

PY - 2022/12

Y1 - 2022/12

N2 - Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) is a debilitating medical condition often accompanied by multiple chronic conditions. COPD is more frequent among older adults and affects both genders. The aim of the current cross-sectional survey was to characterize chronic comorbidities stratified by gender and age among patients with COPD under the care of general practitioners (GP) and pulmonologists, using real-world patient data. A total of 7966 COPD patients (women: 45%) with more than 5 years of the observation period in the practice were examined using 60 different Chronic comorbid conditions (CCC) and Elixhauser measures. More than 9 in 10 patients had at least one, and 51.7% had more than three comorbidities. No gender difference was found in the number of comorbidities. However, men had higher Elixhauser-van Walraven index scores than women, and the types of comorbidities differed by gender. An increasing number of comorbidities was seen with aging but the patients in their 30s and 40s also had a high number of comorbidities. Moreover, GP patients had a higher number and a wider array of documented comorbidities than pulmonology patients did. Psychological comorbidities were common in all patients, but particularly among younger patients. These findings around gender- and age-stratified comorbidities under the care of GPs and pulmonologists have implications for the choice of data provenience for decision-making analysis and treatment selection and success.

AB - Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) is a debilitating medical condition often accompanied by multiple chronic conditions. COPD is more frequent among older adults and affects both genders. The aim of the current cross-sectional survey was to characterize chronic comorbidities stratified by gender and age among patients with COPD under the care of general practitioners (GP) and pulmonologists, using real-world patient data. A total of 7966 COPD patients (women: 45%) with more than 5 years of the observation period in the practice were examined using 60 different Chronic comorbid conditions (CCC) and Elixhauser measures. More than 9 in 10 patients had at least one, and 51.7% had more than three comorbidities. No gender difference was found in the number of comorbidities. However, men had higher Elixhauser-van Walraven index scores than women, and the types of comorbidities differed by gender. An increasing number of comorbidities was seen with aging but the patients in their 30s and 40s also had a high number of comorbidities. Moreover, GP patients had a higher number and a wider array of documented comorbidities than pulmonology patients did. Psychological comorbidities were common in all patients, but particularly among younger patients. These findings around gender- and age-stratified comorbidities under the care of GPs and pulmonologists have implications for the choice of data provenience for decision-making analysis and treatment selection and success.

UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=85129338649&partnerID=8YFLogxK

U2 - 10.1038/s41533-022-00278-8

DO - 10.1038/s41533-022-00278-8

M3 - Article

C2 - 35501357

AN - SCOPUS:85129338649

VL - 32

JO - npj Primary Care Respiratory Medicine

JF - npj Primary Care Respiratory Medicine

SN - 2055-1010

IS - 1

M1 - 17

ER -