Thorax
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Multicenter Study
Should pulmonary embolism be suspected in exacerbation of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease?
The cause of acute exacerbation of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) is often difficult to determine. Pulmonary embolism may be a trigger of acute dyspnoea in patients with COPD. ⋯ The prevalence of unsuspected pulmonary embolism is very low in patients admitted in the emergency department for an acute exacerbation of their COPD. These results argue against a systematic examination for pulmonary embolism in this population.
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Prognosis in chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) is poorly predicted by indices of air flow obstruction, because other factors that reflect the systemic nature of the disease also influence prognosis. ⋯ QMVC is simple and provides more powerful prognostic information on COPD than that provided by age, body mass index and forced expiratory volume in 1 s.