Management of COPD in Vietnam during the COVID-19 period: Current situation and challenges.

Abstract

Objectives: To evaluate the changes in exacerbation rates and other clinical outcomes, and identify remaining difficulties in the management of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) at Vietnamese COPD management units (CMUs).

Methods: A multi-center, prospective cohort study was conducted on COPD at the CMUs of 3 study sites. COPD exacerbation was the primary outcome of this study. Demographic and clinical informations were collected at study entry. Participants were followed-up for 12-15 months from the study inclusion.

Results: Over the follow-up period, reduction was observed in the prevalence of patients with hospitalization (decreased from 42.3% to 34.4%) and ICU/ED admission (decreased from 5.7% to 0.6%). The annual exacerbation rate and hospitalization rate were 0.75±0.89 and 0.56±0.70, respectively. The severity of symptoms, degree of airflow obstruction, and BMI were factors associated with increased frequency of COPD exacerbations and associated with increased annual exacerbation rate. Our results highlight the difficulties and challenges in managing COPD during the COVID-19 epidemic, including increasing numbers of smokers, inadequate testing request rates, and prescribing medication inconsistent with standard treatment guidelines.

Conclusion: Our results highlight the difficulties and challenges in managing COPD during the COVID-19 epidemic, including increasing numbers of smokers, inadequate testing request rates, and prescribing medication inconsistent with standard treatment guidelines. These findings provide a foundation for future interventions and policy improvements.