Volume 17, No. 1, Winter 2009
By Gary Sheehan
Here’s a national story that should be of special interest to Cape Codders.
It concerns a new report from the National Institutes of Health (NIH) on increasing public awareness of a deadly condition, Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease.
COPD is the nation’s fourth leading killer and it is a particular threat to the Cape’s large elderly population.
Consider. The Cape Cod Commission reports that Barnstable County’s share of residents 65 and over at nearly 25 percent of our population is just about double the national average. And the NIH reports that the incidence of COPD rises from 3.5 percent in the 18-44 year-old age bracket to 6.9 percent for 45-64 and 11.9 percent for the 65-and-up. Get the connection?
The National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute (NHLBI) of the NIH analyzed results from the annual HealthStyles survey of American public health attitudes, knowledge, practices and lifestyle habits.
Awareness of COPD is growing, it found, but still few Americans have a thorough understanding of the disease. The new data show that 64 percent of survey respondents had heard of COPD, compared with 49 percent in a 2004 survey. But only half of these recognized the disease as a leading cause of death, and just 44 percent understood it to be treatable.
COPD is a serious lung disease affecting an estimated 24 million Americans, half currently diagnosed. The other 12 million remain undiagnosed despite recognizable symptoms.
COPD typically affects people over 45, especially those who smoke or have smoked, and those with risk factors associated with genetics or environmental exposures. Symptoms include chronic cough, sometimes called “smoker's cough,” shortness of breath, wheezing, not being able to take a deep breath, and excess sputum production.
Unfortunately, the survey showed that many respondents who were aware of the disease, did not know the symptoms and, in many cases, the causes of COPD.
Most disturbing, while smoking contributes to as many as nine out of 10 COPD-related deaths, two-thirds of the respondents did not recognize smoking as a risk factor. Among current smokers surveyed, 78 percent failed to recognize that their smoking puts them at greater risk for COPD.
COPD can be diagnosed with a simple breathing test called spirometry. Those at risk for COPD as well as those experiencing symptoms should talk to their doctor about the test. It is not invasive and can be conducted in the doctor's office.
For those diagnosed with COPD, many treatments are available to reduce symptoms, improve breathing and help patients resume regular activities.
For more information on COPD, visit: http://www.nhlbi.nih.gov/health/public/lung/copd/ or http://www.nhlbi.nih.gov/health/dci/Diseases/Copd/Copd_WhatIs.html
(Mr. Sheehan is President/CEO of Cape Medical Supply, Inc., 1-800-339-3322 or gsheehan@capemedical.net,)
From the Cape Cod COPD Support Group comes this reminder to those who use inhalers containing the drug albuterol. Be prepared to make a change.
Manufacturers are phasing out one type of this device called the CFC Inhaler and increasing production of another more environmentally friendly version called the HFA Inhaler. As of December 31, albuterol inhalers with CFCs no longer were allowed to be made or sold in the United States.
The change was mandated by the federal government in 2005 to comply with a 1987 treaty to protect the earth’s ozone layer. (Technically, chlorofluorocarbons are being replaced by hydrofluoroalkane.)
The new version—already in use—is as effective as the CFC inhaler and produces the same rate of side effects. There are three critical differences to obtain maximum benefit from the new inhalers: the pumping process to prime the device is more important, the HFAs produce a softer (though still effective) spray and they require a slower inhale. They also require regular washing. And they’re more expensive.
Four commercial brands of HFA Inhalers are currently on the market. There are no known generic versions.