Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) is a leading cause of morbidity and mortality worldwide, placing a major economic burden on healthcare systems.

Emphysema and chronic bronchitis are the two primary conditions of COPD. Patients with COPD face significant physiological changes that severely compromise their respiratory systems, and so their life.

It is estimated that globally, 65 million people are currently diagnosed with moderate to severe COPD¹, and research shows us that there are likely to be another 12 million undiagnosed COPD patients². COPD resulted in a total of $49.9 billion direct and indirect costs to the U.S. healthcare system in 2010³. Approximately 75% of those costs are associated with exacerbations.⁴

Medicare data shows us that 20.2% of these COPD patients are readmitted to the hospital within 30 days of a hospital discharge. This has drawn the attention of policymakers, regulatory makers and federal government, with a focus on improving the care and management of these patients.⁵

In the European Union, the total direct costs of respiratory disease are estimated to be about 6% of the total health care budget, with COPD accounting for 56% (38.6 billion Euros) of this cost.^1,6

According to the WHO, total deaths from COPD are projected to increase by more than 30% in the next 10 years.¹ Estimates show that by 2030, COPD will be the third leading cause of death worldwide.¹

There are many treatment options for COPD, one of which is noninvasive ventilation (NIV). NIV is well established as an effective treatment for patients hospitalised with acute exacerbations of hypercapnic COPD. Routine long-term use of home NIV for COPD has not been established as the standard of care; however, it has been shown to be successful in COPD patients with daytime hypercapnia.⁷

The intense burden that COPD has on patients and global healthcare systems has everyone looking for a solution. ResMed is working with pulmonologists, healthcare systems and payers to increase awareness of NIV therapy as an effective treatment solution for hypercapnic COPD.