Some issues in the treatment of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease: assessment of students and physicians knowledge. Results of ASCO-III project

Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) is a global problem. The prevalence of COPD varies from country to country: for example, in Mexico it is about 6%, while in Chile it exceeds 20%. This is due to differences in lifestyle and exposure to harmful factors. According to the BOLD study, among people over 40 years of age, the prevalence of COPD stage II and higher is 10.1% (11.8% among men and 8.5% among women). In Russia, according to the GARD program, COPD occurs in 15.3% of the population, and in 21.8% among people with respiratory symptoms. According to the WHO, COPD is the third leading cause of death worldwide, killing approximately 2.8 million people (4.8% of all deaths) each year. Mortality rates vary widely in Europe, from 0.2 per 100,000 in Greece, Sweden, Iceland, and Norway to 80 per 100,000 in Romania. Global COPD mortality remained stable between 1990 and 2010, fluctuating between 3 million and 2.8 million cases annually.