Kronik Obstrüktif Akciğer Hastalığı (KOAH) Olanlarda Dispnenin Bilişsel Duruma Etkisi

Aim: The aim of this study is to examine the effect of the dyspnea on cognitive status in patients with chronic obstructive pulmonary diseases (COPD). Material and Methods: The universe of this descriptive study consist of 315 COPD patients. Data were collected with a Questionare, Medical Research Council Scale (MRCS) and Standardize Mini Mental State Examination (SMMT-E). In the analyses of the data, descriptive statistics, independent t-test, oneway analysis of variance and regression and Tamhane T2 analysis were employed. Results: The mean age of the patients patricipating the study was 54.06 (11.41) years. 38% of the patients were determined to experienced moderate dyspnea (2.20±0.95). The patients’ cognitive status mean scores were found low (21.38±5.74) and 58.7% had cognitive impairment. It was determined in multiple regression analysis that severe dyspnea level, inadequacy in dyspnea management, associating dyspnea with breathlessness, feeling of low mood and fear of death, use of oxygen tube and bipod at home were associated with cognitive status. Moreover, it was found that 31% of the variance in the cognitive level of the patients was explained by the independent variables related to dyspnea (R2 = 0.581; adjusted R2= 0.311). It was found that there was a strong positive correlation between dyspnea and cognition status (r=-0.705, p=0.000). Conclusion: It was determined that dyspnea effects to SMMT-E and therefore it could be advised to taking measures to reduce dyspnea COPD patients.