Occurrence of respiratory symptoms in persons with restrictive ventilatory impairment compared with persons with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease: The PLATINO study.

Patients with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) usually complain of symptoms such as cough, sputum, wheezing, and dyspnea. Little is known about clinical symptoms in individuals with restrictive ventilatory impairment. The aim of this study was to compare the prevalence and type of respiratory symptoms in patients with COPD to those reported by individuals with restrictive ventilatory impairment in the Proyecto Latinoamericano de Investigacion en Obstruccion Pulmonar study. Between 2002 and 2004, individuals ≥40 years of age from five cities in Latin America performed pre and post-bronchodilator spirometry and had their respiratory symptoms recorded in a standardized questionnaire. Among the 5315 individuals evaluated, 260 (5.1%) had a restrictive spirometric diagnosis (forced vital capacity (FVC) < lower limit of normal (LLN) with forced expiratory volume in the first second to forced vital capacity ratio (FEV1/FVC) ≥ LLN; American Thoracic Society (ATS)/European Respiratory Society (ERS) 2005) and 610 (11.9%) were diagnosed with an obstructive pattern (FEV1/FVC < LLN; ATS/ERS 2005). Patients with mild restriction wheezed more ((30.8%) vs. (17.8%); p < 0.028). No difference was seen in dyspnea, cough, and sputum between the two groups after adjusting for severity stage. The health status scores for the short form 12 questionnaire were similar in restricted and obstructed patients for both physical (48.4 ± 9.4 vs. 48.3 ± 9.8) and mental (50.8 ± 10.6 vs. 50.0 ± 11.5) domains. Overall, respiratory symptoms are not frequently reported by patients with restricted and obstructed patterns as defined by spirometry. Wheezing was more frequent in patients with restricted pattern compared with those with obstructive ventilatory defect. However, the prevalence of cough, sputum production, and dyspnea are not different between the two groups when adjusted by the same severity stage.

Behavior of Quality of Life (SGRQ) in COPD Patients According to BODE Scores.

INTRODUCTION: To evaluate if the association between the BODE index and deterioration in health-related quality of life is linear. To determine possible associations between the BODE index and health status evaluated by the Saint George's Respiratory Questionnaire (SGRQ) at all levels of disease severity in COPD. METHODS: A cross-sectional study was carried out on 253 patients from two Latin American respiratory centers (Brazil and Chile) with a clinical diagnosis of COPD, based on GOLD criteria. Assessment included the BODE index and the SGRQ questionnaire. RESULTS: Patients had a BODE index of 3.1±2.0; FEV1 (%) of 49±19.2; BMI (kg/m(2)) of 24.7±5.1; 6MWT distance (meters) of 444±96. Significant correlations were found between the BODE index and SGRQ total scores (r=0.5; <0.001), impact (r=0.45; <0.001) and activity (r=0.5; <0.001). From BODE score zero, HRQOL was already compromised in all SGRQ domains. SGRQ scores (total and domain) increased progressively for individual components of the BODE index, with the decrease in airflow limitation (<0.05), BMI (<0.002) and 6MWT (<0.05), and with the increase in the Modified Medical Research Council (MMRC) score (<0.05). CONCLUSION: There is an association between health-related quality of life, as assessed by the SGRQ and the BODE index within the entire spectrum of COPD severity. Even in early disease stages and BODE index zero, health-related quality of life is already impaired.