Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease (COPD)

Lead analyst: Julian Flowers

COPD is the fifth biggest killer in the UK, the second most common cause of emergency admission to hospital and one of the most costly inpatient conditions treated by the NHS. It is a general term that is used to describe a number of conditions, including chronic bronchitis and emphysema. COPD leads to damaged airways in the lungs, causing them to become narrower and making it harder for air to get in and out. It can be caused by occupational exposure to dust, indoor pollution such as smoke from wood and coal fires, or, in a small number of cases, can be inherited, but its primary cause is smoking.

74,000 people in the East of England are diagnosed with COPD (QOF 2006/07), and there are believed to be many more undiagnosed cases.

General Practice Profiles contain information from the Quality and Outcomes Framework (QOF) dataset on the prevalence of COPD and asthma, and the care that registered patients receive.

APHO have developed modelled estimates of the prevalence of COPD. These estimates, available for PCTs, local authorities and GP practices, are based on models derived from Health Survey for England data. The models take into account age, sex, deprivation, rurality, ethnicity and smoking status.

The Health Inequalities theme in Fingertips contains premature (aged <75) mortality from respiratory disease for Local Authorities and PCTS, including comparison between mortality in the most deprived fifth of the population and the rest.

The 2010 Health Survey for England focussed on respiratory health. The survey used questionnaires and spirometry to investigate lung function, asthma and COPD in adults and children.

The Disease Management Information Toolkit from the Department of Health is designed to aid commissioning for long term conditions, including respiratory disease.

PCT Spend and Outcomes Factsheets based on Programme Budgeting data are published by YHPHO on behalf of the English PHOs.

The Compendium of Population Health Indicators published by the NHS Information Centre contains many measures of respiratory disease morbidity, mortality and healthcare activity.

Regional and Sub Regional Data

Date	Title	Format	View
23 Nov 2009	Trend in QOF prevalence for 11 conditions from 200405 to 200809 at PCT level
2 May 2008	Trend in prevalence of COPD, CHD, Diabetes*, Hypertension, and Cancer at PCT level (QOF 2004/05 to 2006/07)
27 Nov 2008	Bronchitis, emphysema & COPD mortality DSRs for East of England Local Authorities 1996-2007
7 Apr 2004	Health Survey for England. Health & lifestyle indicators for Strategic Health Authorities 1994-2002. Proportion of adults with limiting longstanding illness

National and International Reports and Statistics

Date	Title	Format	View
2 May 2008	Invisible Lives: Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease (COPD) finding the missing millions
15 Jun 2006	The Burden of Lung Disease - 2nd edition 2006
15 May 2005	Trends in COPD (Chronic Bronchitis and Emphysema) Morbidity and Mortality in USA

Tools and Analysis

Date	Title	Format	View
4 Jan 2010	Chronic disease prevalence by age, sex and region in 2008
7 Oct 2008	Archived modelled estimates and projections of COPD for Local Authorities in England (updated Oct 08)
7 Oct 2008	Archived modelled estimates and projections of COPD for PCTs in England (updated Oct 08)
14 Oct 2008	Alternative COPD modelled prevalence estimate for suburban/urban areas
7 Oct 2008	Archived COPD prevalence model briefing document
19 Jun 2007	Disease Management Information Toolkit (DMIT)
16 Nov 2005	Long Term Conditions: A Pan London Analysis Of “Frequent Users”
17 Apr 2008	Exception Rates for all PCTs in England for CHD, COPD, Diabetes and the average rate for all three diseases
	Model based prevalence of COPD at PCT level (updated Feb 2008)

Policy and Guidelines

Date	Title	Format	View
6 Nov 2006	Assisted-discharge service for patients with COPD
6 Nov 2006	Pulmonary rehabilitation service for patients with COPD
15 Nov 2005	Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease - Management of COPD in adults in primary and secondary care
19 Feb 2005	Evercare evaluation interim report: implications for supporting people with long term conditions

Organisations and Links

Date	Title	Format	View
	Action on Smoking and Health (ASH)
	British Thoracic Society
11 Nov 2005	Chest Medicine On-Line: COPD The UK perspective
	Long-term Medical Conditions Alliance