A cross-sectional study in severe COPD patients in the Middle East and Africa (MEA): Symptoms variability and quality of life

Abstract

Objective: To assess symptoms variability and their impact on morning activities in patients with severe stable COPD in MEA. Methods: Non-interventional, cross-sectional study in 3253 patients with stable severe COPD (GOLD 2015, C or D categories) from 8 MEA countries (Algeria, Egypt, Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, Qatar, Turkey, South Africa, and UAE). The Global Chest Symptoms Questionnaire (GCSQ), the Capacity of Daily Living during the Morning (CDLM), and the Morning Activities and Symptoms Questionnaires (MASQ) were used to assess symptoms variability and impact on morning activities. Results: 81.6% and 83.4% of patients, respectively, reported weekly and daily variability of symptoms. Mean (±SD) GCSQ scores showed mild to moderate symptom variations with slight differences between morning (1.4±1.1), afternoon (1.2±0.9), evening (1.4±1.1), and night (1.5±1.1). Variables significantly associated with daily or weekly symptom variations were the number of exacerbations (increased risk of daily variations by 12-22% according to symptoms for each exacerbation in the last 12 months), the time since COPD diagnosis (risk increased by 2-3% for each year), and smoking cessation (risk reduced by 27-49%). Overall, 55.3% of patients had difficulty to get out of bed due to COPD, 63.7% to wash themselves, 58.7% to get dressed, 69.9% to walk around home early in the morning, and 71.1% to walk around home later in the morning, indicating considerable impact of symptoms on quality of life in most patients. Conclusion: Given its high impact on quality of life, daily or weekly symptom variability represents a key challenge for severe COPD patients in MEA. Supported by AstraZeneca