Patients with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) who also suffer from cardiovascular disease face not only a higher risk of severe exacerbation but also a significantly greater medical cost burden, a study found. The findings point to the need for integrated treatment that manages cardiovascular disease alongside lung function-centered care.
The Korea National Institute of Health under the Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency said on the 9th that an analysis of 2,474 COPD patients in Korea showed both severe exacerbation and medical cost burdens increased among patients with cardiovascular comorbidities. The findings were published in Respiratory Research, an international journal in the respiratory field.
The analysis found that 94.5% of all COPD patients had at least one comorbidity, with cardiovascular disease confirmed as the most common. In particular, patients with a history of myocardial infarction or ischemic stroke had a significantly higher risk of severe exacerbation within one year.
Even after adjusting for the effects of non-cardiovascular conditions, patients with myocardial infarction had a 1.54 times higher risk of severe exacerbation, while ischemic stroke patients had a 1.47 times higher risk. Severe exacerbation refers to a condition requiring an emergency room visit or hospitalization.
The medical cost burden also rose sharply. Patients with a high COTE index, which measures comorbidity burden, incurred total medical costs 1.63 times higher than those without. Cost increases were especially pronounced among patients with hypertension, coronary artery disease, ischemic stroke, or congestive heart failure.
The researchers concluded that lung function alone is insufficient to fully explain patient prognosis in COPD management. They explained that assessing major cardiovascular diseases such as myocardial infarction and ischemic stroke together makes it possible to identify high-risk groups early and reduce acute exacerbations and medical cost burdens.
"We confirmed that cardiovascular disease in COPD patients is closely associated not only with acute exacerbation but also with increased medical costs," said Kim Young-yeol, director of the Division of Respiratory and Allergic Disease Research at the Korea National Institute of Health. "We plan to continue follow-up research using long-term tracking data and healthcare big data to predict exacerbation risk and medical cost burdens."
