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Background. COPD is a common worldwide condition associated with morbidity and mortality. Its symptoms can be easily overlooked, accounting for an elevated level of under-recognition and under-diagnosis. Knowledge of the prevalence of COPD and the significance of its associated factors in the population enables better management of medical resources. Objectives. To establish the prevalence of COPD in General Practice patients in the Central Region of Portugal and analyze the correlation with associated factors. Methods. Cross-sectional study of patients’ data with COPD (R95, International Classification for Primary Care 2), anonymously gathered from the official database of the Central Health Administration of Portugal. Results. Out of 937,817 individuals, 24,148 patients were identified with COPD, a prevalence of 2.57/100,000. 73.7% were above 65 years of age, and 60.2% were males. BMI was recorded in 60.2% patients, FEV1(%) in 8.0%, and smoking pack-years in 37.1%. Age and BMI were significantly negatively correlated (ρ = -0.032, p < 0.001), with the same occurring between age and FEV1(%) (ρ = -0.073, p < 0.05). A strong association of COPD with male gender and older age groups was found. Conclusions. The prevalence of COPD was significantly higher in males, and age was identified as a risk factor for this condition. Higher age was non-significantly associated with lower FEV1(%) and significantly associated with BMI. The lack of e-records calls for an improvement. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background. Multimorbidity (MM) is associated with decreased quality of life, mainly due to decreased functional capacity and increased use of health care. Objectives. Evaluate the prevalence of MM in older people of Central Portugal and understand the impact of MM on daily life activities (DLA) and how socio-economic level influences the prevalence of MM. Material and methods. Observational study of data on age, sex, number of ICPC2 codes and Barthel (Bt) and Graffar (Gr) Indexes in clinical records of individuals aged between 65 to 99 years enrolled in the Health Centres of the Central Region of Portugal. The Bt was used to assess the dependence on DLA, and the Gr the socio-economic level. Results. Population of 190,025, mean age of 80.16 ± 8.03 years. MM prevalence of 80%, out of which 52.9% were female, and the majority was aged between 76-85 years (39.1%). Average number of health problems: 8.7 problems for males and 9.5 for females. Bt and Gr Indexes we filled in 7.4% and 4.9% of the population. Older people without MM have higher dependency rates than those with MM (total dependence 7.4% vs 6.2% and severe dependence 20.1% vs 9.6%). MM in older people is mainly in the middle (55.3% vs 27.5%) and low (31.8% vs 19.6%) Graffar class, while the older people without MM are mainly in middle to upper (35.3%) and upper (17.6%) Graffar classes. Conclusions. Multimorbidity is mainly associated with lower social classes. The dependence for DLA appears unrelated to MM. Individuals with multimorbidity need special attention based on socio-economic contexts. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background. The "Ten Commandments for patient-centred treatment" suggest a different approach to therapy. Objectives. To ascertain the level of agreement with the "Ten Commandments for patient-centred treatment" by physicians in Central Portugal, exploring differences by age group, sex and medical speciality. Material and methods. An online questionnaire in September of 2016, sent to doctors registered in the Central Regional Section of the Portuguese Medical Association, with weekly reminders to non-respondents. The English wording was translated to Portuguese, a questionnaire with a four-grade answer was created and its reliability determined. Variables such as sex, age group and medical specialty were considered. Descriptive and inferential statistics were performed. Results. A representative yet convenient sample of 811 doctors participated. Their description is as follows: ≤ 35 years n = 203, ≥ 36 and ≤ 55 years n = 217 and ≥ 56 years n = 373, women n = 391 (49.2%), General Practice/Family Medicine (GP/FM) n = 301, medical specialty n = 303 and medico-surgical specialty n = 173. By medical specialty, for commandment 1, there is higher prevalence of "Disagree/Completely Disagree" in the GP/FM specialty (p < 0.001). By gender, for commandment 1, women vs men doctors "Disagree/Completely Disagree" proportion of 11.7% vs 6,4% (p = 0.003). For the younger age groups, there is a greater proportion of "Disagree/Completely Disagree" for Commandment 1 (p = 0.016), for Commandment 4 (p = 0.007), for Commandment 6 (p = 0.001), for Commandment 7 (p = 0.001) and for Commandment 8 (p = 0.020). Conclusions. There is vast agreement with the "Ten Commandments for patient-centred treatment" in central Portugal. For Commandments 1, 3 and 6, the proportion of "Disagree/Completely Disagree" is higher than for the remaining. There is a need for future investigations to explain the present results. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]