Rational monitoring of COPD: where do current clinical guidelines stand?

Abstract

An important goal of the GOLD initiative is to counter the nihilistic attitude and to promote a proactive engagement of physicians and allied healthcare professionals with COPD patients over time 2. In addition, GOLD, and also other guidelines, recommend regular surveillance of patients' respiratory health status 1, 3–19. The rationale behind the regular follow-up of patients with chronic conditions, also referred to as “monitoring”, is that it facilitates optimal outcome of patient care 20, 21. However, care of COPD implicates large numbers of patients and, consequently, monitoring their health status would result in substantial use of healthcare resources. In the present paper, the authors reflect on monitoring, as currently recommended in COPD guidelines, and discuss the rationale behind it, including some pros and cons of the procedures involved.