Healthcare costs of COPD in Italian referral centres: A prospective study

SummaryBackgroundThis study estimated the healthcare resource utilisation and costs of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) patients, staged by severity, in the Italian pneumology departments (PDs).MethodsThe project was a multi-centre observational study conducted in 11 Italian PDs throughout the country.A total of 268 patients were recruited and followed prospectively for 1 year. For the purpose of analysis, patients were divided into four groups according to the severity at onset:•mild COPD (stage I)—postbronchodilator FEV1/FVC <70% and FEV1 ⩾ 80% of predicted;•moderate COPD (stage II)—postbronchodilator FEV1/FVC <70% and 50% ⩽FEV1< 80% of predicted;•severe COPD (stage III)—postbronchodilator FEV1/FVC <70% and 30% ⩽FEV1 <50% of predicted;•very severe COPD (stage IV)—postbronchodilator FEV1/FVC <70% and FEV1