A new study has found no improvement in respiratory-related mortality in UK patients with chronic respiratory diseases (CRDs).
The research linked data from the Clinical Practice Research Datalink and the Office of National Statistics for England and Wales to determine mortality rates and the most common causes of death in people with CRD in England from 2005 to 2015.
Of the 558,888 patients with CRD, 451,830 had asthma, 137,709 had COPD, 19,374 had bronchiectasis and 10,745 had interstitial lung diseases (ILDs).
The age-standardised mortality rate of patients with CRD was 1607 per 100,000 persons. The rate was 856/100,000 for asthma, 1503/100,000 for COPD, 1463/100,000 for bronchiectasis and 2609/100,000 for ILD. Overall, CRD mortality was 54% higher than the general population.
A third of patients with CRD died from respiratory-related causes. While cardiovascular-related mortality decreased significantly over time, respiratory-related mortality remained constant. Among patients with asthma, a small decrease in the proportion of respiratory-related deaths was seen over time.
Patients with CRD were more likely to die from neoplasms or respiratory illness, but less likely to die of cardiovascular disease, than they were 10 years ago.
This is the largest and most contemporary study to investigate the mortality of patients with CRD using a nationally representative UK population. It suggests disease-modifying intervention strategies are needed to improve CRD survival.
