Exacerbations and Health Related Quality of Life in Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease

Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) exacerbation is a major cause of physician visits and hospital admissions associated with acute respiratory failure, causing increased morbidity and premature mortality and thus it can significantly affect Health Related Quality of Life (HRQoL). Previous studies suggested that patients who have experienced frequent exacerbation present worse HRQoL compared to patients with infrequent exacerbations. However, there are still questions regarding the relationship between HRQoL and exacerbations. In the present study the investigators will study a cohort of COPD patients over 6 years, they will document exacerbations, they will assess lung emphysema by computed tomography of the chest and they will evaluate health related quality of life in COPD patients. The investigators hypothesize that the extend of emphysema in COPD patients is positively correlated with worsen Health related quality of life (HRQoL).