Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) remains a major public health problem. It is the fourth leading cause of chronic morbidity and mortality in the United States, and is projected to rank fifth in 2020 in burden of disease worldwide, according to a study published by the World Bank/World Health Organization. Yet, COPD remains relatively unknown or ignored by the public as well as public health and government officials. In 1998, in an effort to bring more attention to COPD, its management, and its prevention, a committed group of scientists encouraged the U.S. National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute and the World Health Organization to form the Global Initiative for Chronic Obstructive Lung Disease (GOLD). Among the important objectives of GOLD are to increase awareness of COPD and to help the millions of people who suffer from this disease and die prematurely of it or its complications. The first step in the GOLD program was to prepare a consensus report, Global Strategy for the Diagnosis, Management, and Prevention of COPD, published in 2001. The present, newly revised document follows the same format as the original consensus report, but has been updated to reflect the many publications on COPD that have appeared. GOLD national leaders, a network of international experts, have initiated investigations of the causes and prevalence of COPD in their countries, and developed innovative approaches for the dissemination and implementation of COPD management guidelines. We appreciate the enormous amount of work the GOLD national leaders have done on behalf of their patients with COPD. Despite the achievements in the 5 years since the GOLD report was originally published, considerable additional work is ahead of us if we are to control this major public health problem. The GOLD initiative will continue to bring COPD to the attention of governments, public health officials, health care workers, and the general public, but a concerted effort by all involved in health care will be necessary.

https://www.who.int/respiratory/copd/GOLD_WR_06.pdf

Global strategy for the diagnosis, management, and prevention of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease: GOLD executive summary.

Global strategy for the diagnosis, management, and prevention of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease. NHLBI/WHO Global Initiative for Chronic Obstructive Lung Disease (GOLD) Workshop summary.

Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) is a common problem in the elderly. The disease is characterised by intermittent worsening of symptoms and these episodes are called acute exacerbations. The best estimate, based on several lines of evidence, is that approximately half of all exacerbations are caused by bacteria. These lines of evidence include studies of lower respiratory tract bacteriology during exacerbations, correlation of airways’ inflammation with results of sputum cultures during exacerbations, analysis of immune responses to bacterial pathogens, and the observation in randomised, prospective, placebo-controlled trials that antibacterial therapy is of benefit. The most important bacterial causes of exacerbations of COPD are nontypeable Haemophilus influenzae, Moraxella catarrhalis, Streptococcus pneumoniae and Chlamydia pneumoniae.

/pdf/chronic-obstructive-pulmonary-disease-4ipss13czj.pdf

Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease

Representatives from many countries serve as a network for the dissemination and implementation of programs for diagnosis, management, and prevention of COPD. The GOLD Board of Directors is grateful to the many GOLD National Leaders who participated in discussions of concepts that appear in GOLD reports.

Global initiative for chronic obstructive lung disease.

https://www.thelancet.com/pdfs/journals/lancet/PIIS0140-6736(03)12459-2.pdf

Combined salmeterol and fluticasone in the treatment of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease: a randomised controlled trial.

Efficacy of Salmeterol Xinafoate in the Treatment of COPD

Clinical applications of forced oscillation to assess peripheral airway function

Clinical application of forced oscillation.

https://americansleepandbreathingacademy.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/08/IOS-WTC.pdf

M. Goldman

Papers

Efficacy of Salmeterol Xinafoate in the Treatment of COPD

Clinical applications of forced oscillation to assess peripheral airway function

Clinical application of forced oscillation.

Respiratory symptoms and physiologic assessment of ironworkers at the World Trade Center disaster site.

Modeling Human Respiratory Impedance