Treatment of acute severe asthma and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease in Danish hospitals. Do national recommendations improve on the quality of the treatment?

Studies have demonstrated suboptimal treatment of acute severe asthma and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD). We examined the quality of treatment in Denmark and the effect of intervention, by publication of recommendations for standardised treatment. All 70 hospitals in Denmark with emergency facilities participated in a telephone questionnaire, examining treatment behaviours among house officers. The survey was repeated 3 years later, after publication of national recommendations for treatment of acute exacerbations of asthma and COPD. The response rate in both surveys was 100%. An insufficient handling of nebulisers, a huge variation in the delivered dose of bronchodilators and a suboptimal use of corticosteroids was found. A significant trend towards more liberate use of oxygen was seen in both asthma (3.2 l min(-1) versus 4.8 l min(-1), P<0.001) and COPD (1.5 l min(-1) versus 1.9 l min(-1), P = 0.047). Further, a huge difference in treatment behaviours was revealed from this survey The knowledge among house officers of basic principles of treatment was insufficient. Treatment behaviour was only moderately affected by national publication of detailed recommendations for treatment. This study indicates a need for implementing tools for quality control.

A proposal for a practical treatment guideline designed for the initial two-hours of the management of patients with acute severe asthma and COPD using the principles of evidence-based medicine.

We have proposed a clinical treatment guideline for the management of acute, severe asthma and chronic obstructive pulmonarydisease (COPD) using the principles of evidence-based medicine. The content is based upon practical clinical issues in need of consensus. A previous study has shown that this particular area is in serious need of quality control. Based on a strict 2 h time schedule with a unified treatment plan for both asthma and COPD, it is possible to secure for the patients a well-documented medical therapy promoting decision-making and clarification of the patient within this time limit. A summary of the statements is presented in a one-page, user-friendly format in order to cope with the clinician's need of having access to published evidence quickly and easily. A website (www.phanareth.dk or a website provided by Respiratory Medicine) has been established providing regular updates. A strategy for the implementation and the evaluation process has been planned after the publication of this paper. We believe this approach to be an important step towards an increase in the quality of guidelines and also a tool to make "guideline writers" aware of the responsibility of making their recommendations work.

Peak flow as predictor of overall mortality in asthma and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease.

Lung function is a strong predictor of overall mortality in asthma and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD). FEV1 is considered to be the "gold standard," whereas peak expiratory flow (PEF) is mostly used in absence of FEV1 measurements. We compared the predictive power of PEF and FEV1, measured after maximal bronchodilation, which included a short course of oral corticosteroids. The study population comprised 491 asthmatics and 1,095 subjects with COPD. Pulmonary function tests were performed between 1983 and 1988, and survival data were obtained by September 1997, when 127 asthmatics and 723 subjects with COPD had died. Predictors of survival were examined by Cox proportional hazards analyses. After controlling for age, smoking, sex, and body mass index, we found best PEF to be at least equal to best FEV1 as predictor of overall mortality in subjects with COPD. The predictive power of best PEF was in part maintained after controlling for best FEV1. In asthma, best FEV1 seemed to be a better predictor of mortality than best PEF. Despite close correlation to FEV1, PEF apparently provides independent prognostic information in patients with COPD. This may be due to PEF and FEV1 reflecting different components of COPD, i.e., chronic bronchitis, small airways disease, and emphysema. Furthermore, extrapulmonary components such as muscle mass and general "vigour" probably affect PEF to a greater extent than they affect FEV1.

Reversible and irreversible airflow obstruction as predictor of overall mortality in asthma and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease.

The importance of reversible airflow obstruction to the prognosis of asthma and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) is not clear. We tested the hypothesis that reversibility to corticosteroid and bronchodilator is not an independent predictor of prognosis, but merely reflects a component of the maximal attainable lung function, which is the best spirometric predictor of survival. During a 6-yr period (1983-1988), 1,586 subjects with asthma or COPD underwent standardized bronchodilator and corticosteroid reversibility tests at a chest clinic in Copenhagen. The vital status was obtained by September 1997. The relationship between mortality and age, gender, smoking, FEV1, and reversibilities was examined by Cox proportional hazards analyses. Of 1,586 subjects, 850 had died before September 1997. Age, smoking, and FEV1 were significant predictors of mortality. After controlling for baseline FEV1, bronchodilator and corticosteroid reversibility were significantly associated with better survival. However, after controlling for best FEV1 all reversibilities became nonsignificant and nonpredictive. The combined use of corticosteroid and bronchodilator reversibility in survival analyses is a novel approach, and we have shown that both contribute to survival prediction to the extent that they modify FEV1. However, reversibility per se does not influence survival in subjects with moderate to severe asthma or COPD.

[Treatment of severe acute exacerbation of asthma and chronic obstructive lung disease. An interview study]. / Behandling af akut svaer eksacerbation af asthma og kronisk obstruktiv lungesygdom. En interviewundersøgelse.

UNLABELLED: A telephone survey was conducted of all the 71 Danish hospitals with the capacity to receive acutely ill medical patients. The purpose was to register treatment regimes used in acute asthma and exacerbations in chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD). The house officer on duty was interviewed and questioned about the use of nebulizers, oxygen therapy, bronchodilators, steroids, theophyllins and monitoring of the patient's condition. The physician survey was supplemented by a smaller survey among emergency room nurses about nebulizing systems. The answers showed inadequate knowledge of nebulizing systems. There was a noticeable variation in the dosing of oxygen and in the dosing of bronchodilators and steroids. beta 2-agonist treatment by nebulizer differed with a factor 14 in dose. The majority of the physicians had no specific parameters for monitoring severity of disease. CONCLUSION: There is a need for improvement of the knowledge of nebulizing systems, including specific knowledge of the appropriate use of propellant gasflow and time of nebulizing for optimum performance of the used nebulizer. Divergent answers from the nurses and the physicians show the need for interdisciplinary instruction. The noticeable variation in treatment in this Danish survey displays a need for quality control in terms of concise guidelines for medical therapy in acute exacerbations of asthma and COPD and guidelines for monitoring of the response to the treatment. A suggestion for a treatment regime is proposed.