A recent survey showed that about 61 percent of Taiwanese with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) also have cardiovascular disease (CVD), the Taiwan Society of Pulmonary and Critical Care Medicine said.
WHO data showed that COPD is the fourth-biggest cause of death globally, group president Chen Yu-min (陳育民) said, adding that according to the Ministry of Health and Welfare, more than 6,000 people die of the disease annually in Taiwan.
The group during a news conference on Wednesday cited as an example a 67-year-old man with COPD who loss consciousness by the side of a road after experiencing chest tightness.
Photo: Chiu Chih-jou, Taipei Times
The man was rushed to a hospital, where he was diagnosed with heart failure, the group said, adding that such cases are not rare.
Since the Global Initiative for Chronic Obstructive Lung Disease’s guidelines this year said that COPD significantly increases the risk of cardiovascular diseases, the agency added cardiovascular comorbidities in its latest survey, Chen said.
Among 1,240 respondents with COPD, up to 61 percent reported having cardiovascular diseases, he added.
Physician Su Kang-cheng (蘇剛正) said COPD took 6,193 lives and was the eighth-biggest cause of deaths in Taiwan last year, but it might also be closely associated with the top three causes of death — cancer, heart disease and pneumonia.
Smoking and COPD are the main causes of lung cancer, COPD significantly increases the risk of cardiovascular diseases, and COPD weakens respiratory defenses and potentially increases susceptibility to infection, he said.
The survey found that people who experienced acute exacerbation of COPD have a 4.6 times higher risk of suffering a cardiovascular event, Su said, adding that even after six months or a year after the acute exacerbation, they still face a higher risk of a cardiovascular event.
According to the survey, quitting smoking reduces the risk of COPD exacerbation by 31 percent and risk of a cardiovascular event by 25 percent, while getting vaccinated against respiratory infections and undergoing pulmonary rehabilitation reduce the risk of COPD exacerbation by 12 percent and 17 percent respectively, he said.
The group suggested that people stop smoking, get vaccinated, undergo pulmonary rehabilitation, use a COPD inhaler regularly and make sure they get enough nutrition to manage COPD and prevent it from worsening, Su said.
National Health Insurance Administration Director-General Chen Lian-yu (陳亮妤) said a Pay-for-Performance program, which financially incentivizes healthcare providers to meet quality targets — has been in place for COPD treatment since 2017.
After discussions with medical societies, the quality standards would be modified and enacted from Jan. 1 next year, she said, adding that there would be an additional NT$25 million (US$805,283) in funding.
The new standard aims to ensure that at least 70 percent of the payment goes directly to frontline healthcare providers, she said.
Health Promotion Administration Director-General Shen Ching-fen (沈靜芬) said that among the group’s COPD management suggestions, smoking cessation is the most important.
About 99.5 percent of contracted hospitals and clinics have smoking cessation services, Shen added.
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