Making COPD a treatable disease—An integrated care perspective

In general there is a nihilistic view of both health care providers as well as patients regarding the treatment of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD). As COPD is a slowly progressive disease and pharmacotherapy has not shown to be able to reverse this progression, general practitioners (GPs) and chest physicians are less motivated to detect and treat COPD in an early stage. Also patients generally fail to present their symptoms in an early stage, as they do not want to stop smoking or seem to adapt to the functional limitations.Raising awareness is a key prerequisite for making COPD a treatable disease. Especially GPs who treat the majority of COPD patients and see potential and or undiagnosed patients need to be aware that there is much to gain for patients when optimal non-pharmacological as well as pharmacological interventions are implemented. Early diagnosis and intervention can reduce the future burden of the disease for patients, physicians and society.