May 20 2024The Ottawa Hospital Finding and treating people with undiagnosed asthma or chronic obstructive pulmonary disease improved their health and reduced their healthcare visits for respiratory symptoms in the year after diagnosis, according to a world-first clinical trial published in the New England Journal of Medicine.
How did the research team find undiagnosed cases? To find people with undiagnosed asthma and COPD, the research team called random phone numbers at 17 study sites across Canada from 2017 to 2023. An automated call asked whether any adults in the household had unexplained shortness of breath, wheezing, prolonged cough or were coughing up mucus in the past six months.
Half the people in the trial were randomly assigned to usual care , while the other half were treated by a lung specialist and asthma/COPD educator . Treating undiagnosed asthma, COPD leads to fewer healthcare visits The researchers found that patients seen by a lung specialist and asthma/COPD educator averaged 0.53 healthcare visits per year for respiratory symptoms in the year after diagnosis, compared to 1.12 visits in the usual care group.
"Asthma diagnosis makes a big difference," says study participant Jazzminn Hein was 24 years old and had recently given birth to her first child when she got the call inviting her to join the study. Carrying a few loads of laundry up the stairs or talking on the phone for 10 minutes would leave her breathless. She didn't see the downside to getting a breathing test.
"The asthma diagnosis makes a big difference," she says. "Your muscles need oxygen, and when you can't breathe properly it makes you sore and tired all the time. I've noticed an increase in energy. I have two small kids now and I can keep up with them. I sleep better because I used to regularly wake up struggling to breathe."
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