Abstract
The 2008–2013 World Health Organization (WHO) action plan on noncommunicable diseases (NCDs) includes chronic respiratory diseases as one of its four priorities. Major chronic respiratory diseases (CRDs) include asthma and rhinitis, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, occupational lung diseases, sleep-disordered breathing, pulmonary hypertension, bronchiectiasis and pulmonary interstitial diseases. A billion people suffer from chronic respiratory diseases, the majority being in developing countries. CRDs have major adverse effects on the life and disability of patients. Effective intervention plans can prevent and control CRDs, thus reducing morbidity and mortality. A prioritised research agenda should encapsulate all of these considerations in the frame of the global fight against NCDs. This requires both CRD-targeted interventions and transverse NCD programmes which include CRDs, with emphasis on health promotion and disease prevention.
- Asthma
- chronic obstructive pulmonary disease
- chronic respiratory diseases
- noncommunicable diseases
- prevention
- research
Major chronic respiratory diseases (CRDs) include asthma and rhinitis, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), occupational lung diseases, sleep-disordered breathing (SDB), pulmonary hypertension, bronchiectiasis and pulmonary interstitial diseases 1.
Over 1 billion people of all ages suffer from CRDs (table 1). Over 500 million of these live in low- and middle-income countries (LMICs). CRDs are increasing in prevalence and severity 1.
CRDs have major adverse effects on the life and disability of patients 1. It is estimated that 4 million people died prematurely from CRDs in 2005 and it is projected that, globally, the CRD death rate and burden will considerably increase in the future 2.
Everyone in the world is exposed to CRD risk factors, and effective preventive measures are available to reduce the deleterious impact of CRD risk factors: tobacco smoking in all countries, indoor air pollution and particularly biomass fuel combustion in LMICs, outdoor air pollution, unhealthy diet, lack of physical activity and obesity, allergens, and occupational agents 1, 3, 4. The consequences of these factors start before birth and continue throughout life 5–7. Many of them are common to other noncommunicable diseases (NCDs) 2. Furthermore, in some countries, infectious diseases (including tuberculosis and HIV/AIDS) add to the burden of CRD morbidity. Effective interventions can control CRD and reduce morbidity and mortality.
Most CRDs occur in LMICs, which requires consideration of the following factors. 1) Data on CRD burden and risk factors are scarce and surveillance of CRDs is unavailable in most LMICs. Consequently, the true CRD burden on health services and society is unknown. 2) Infrastructure and programmes for the management of CRDs in many LIMCs are not available or poorly developed because of competing priorities. Resources are limited and fragmented. 3) Facilities for diagnosis and monitoring as well as essential medicines for treating CRDs are not available and/or affordable in many LMICs 8, 9. 4) Strategies for CRD prevention and health promotion are often absent or rudimentary. 5) Programmes for educating healthcare providers (HCPs) in the care and management of patients with CRDs require strengthening. 6) Patient involvement in health promotion programmes is rare or non-existent. A prioritised research agenda should encapsulate all of these considerations in the frame of the global fight against NCDs. This requires both CRD-targeted interventions, and transverse NCD programmes that address CRDs and health promotion to prevent them.
Among the CRDs, there are currently four major topics for which more research is needed: 1) severe/uncontrolled asthma and comorbidities; 2) COPD and comorbidities; 3) SDB, links with obesity and other NCDs; and 4) early determinants of respiratory diseases.
REVIEW OF SUCCESSFUL INTERVENTIONS
Asthma
Successful interventions in developed countries
The implementation of clinical practice guidelines has led to improvements in the quality of care and reductions in the burden of disease 10, 11. Patient education improves asthma control, reduces urgent care visits and improves quality of life 12, 13. Environmental control may improve asthma control 14 but single intervention measures are not effective 15.
Successful interventions in LMICs
Outdoor air pollution may be controlled, thus reducing asthma severity 16. For LMICs, The International Union Against Tuberculosis and Lung Disease has developed a guide for asthma management focusing on the World Health Organization (WHO) list of essential medicines 17. A study in a limited number of patients in LMICs has shown benefits 18 and a systematic approach to the organisation of standard case management has been proposed 19.
Community-wide programmes
There are limited data on the effectiveness of asthma care in whole populations at the community level. However, there was a considerable cost-effective reduction of hospitalisations and deaths in a study from Finland 20. In middle-income countries and deprived populations, availability of effective drugs and education reduced hospitalisations and was cost-effective 21–23.
COPD and comorbidities
Successful interventions in developed countries
Several guidelines are available for COPD management 24, 25. However, they should be adapted for LMICs 26. Environmental control is essential, in particular for tobacco (active and passive smoking, as well as other forms of tobacco) 27–30. There are several key actions targeting tobacco control such as the WHO Framework Convention on Tobacco Control and the MPOWER package of interventions (monitor tobacco use and prevention policies; protect people from tobacco smoke; offer help to quit tobacco use; warn about the dangers of tobacco; enforce bans on tobacco advertising, promotion and sponsorship, and; raise taxes on tobacco) 31. Reducing air pollution exposure results in lower CRD morbidity and mortality. Educational interventions have not been fully studied 32. Pulmonary rehabilitation is effective in COPD 33. Regular physical activity should be encouraged in these patients. Influenza and pneumococcal vaccinations are recommended for the prevention of COPD exacerbations 25.
SDB
Successful interventions in developed countries
Active education programmes on diet and exercise are an important component of SDB management 36. Continuous positive airway pressure is highly effective in obstructive sleep apnoea syndrome (OSAS) and decreases cardiovascular comorbidities 37, 38.
Community-wide programme
A Finnish national programme has been started for the prevention and treatment of sleep apnoea (2002–2012) 39.
Occupational CRDs
Pneumoconiosis
Improvement in ventilation and government legislation has dramatically reduced the prevalence of pneumoconiosis in many countries 1 but more data are needed in LMICs.
Early determinants of chronic respiratory diseases
Successful interventions in developed countries
In respiratory distress syndrome of premature infants, surfactant and antenatal steroids 42 have dramatically decreased deaths. Primary prevention of allergy and asthma is still a matter of debate, as only multifaceted interventions have shown some efficacy 43, 44. A Finnish national programme associated with the Global Alliance Against Chronic Respiratory Diseases (GARD) has been started for the prevention and treatment of allergy and asthma (2008–2018) 45.
Transverse NCD prevention and control programmes with CRD components
HCPs face considerable and diverse challenges in LMICs. These include separate, disease-specific interventions fragmenting and duplicating efforts, limiting resources across a range of priorities, as well as competing with programmes against communicable diseases. However, such transverse programmes: 1) may face difficulties in the evaluation of their effectiveness; 2) do not usually provide for adaptation to national, regional, and local needs and resources, resulting in nonfeasibility, nonsustainability or both; 3) do not usually develop a partnership between policy makers and HCPs in the field and, consequently, fail to transform evidence into policies and policies into practice; and 4) do not usually develop and implement affordable educational methods that can be sustained in the resource-poor settings of LMICs.
There are few examples of successful programmes incorporating several NCDs, in some cases with infectious diseases in children and adults 49–51. Lessons learnt from these initial efforts confirm that such methods may be extended in many LMICs to address priority needs in NCD prevention and management.
Models of risk factor effect and avoidance on CRDs
There is little systematically collected evidence on the overall contribution of environmental risk factors to the global burden of disease. WHO recently completed a comprehensive, systematic and transparent estimate of the disease burden attributable to the environment, and 24% of the global burden of disease was estimated to be due to environmental risk factors 52.
The WHO Comparative Risk Assessment methodology 53 enabled the assessment of global mortality and morbidity resulting from exposures to selected occupational hazards in the year 2000. Occupational risk factors were responsible for 13% of COPD cases, 11% of asthma cases, 9% of lung cancer cases, and 100% of pneumoconioses and mesothelioma cases 54.
Health benefits that environmental interventions could achieve are major considerations when choosing environmental health actions to prevent disease. WHO has released profiles of the environmental burden of disease for 192 countries 55. 13–37% of the countries' disease burdens could be prevented by environmental improvements, resulting in a reduction of ∼13 million deaths per yr 56.
For successful NCD prevention and control strategies, a focus on individuals needs to complement population-wide strategies. Strategies that focus on individuals are cost-effective only when targeted at high-risk groups. Tools predicting an individual's absolute NCD risk are vital for targeting limited resources in high-risk individuals who are likely to benefit the most 57. The WHO/International Society of Hypertension (ISH) charts, already available, enable the prediction of the future risk of heart attacks and strokes in people living in LMICs 57, 58. Risk charts are also available for cancer 59.
PRIORITISED RESEARCH AGENDA FOR CRDS
Research opportunities vary between high-income countries, where diagnostic methods and treatments are usually available, and LMICs. The priorities should be flexible enough to harmonise the specific needs and conditions of the countries. Standardised methods, in particular for epidemiologic studies, should be made available and should be tailored for LMICs. The redefining (phenotyping) of CRDs is ongoing and will influence the programme in coming years as well as the transition of disease burden in different regions and climate changes. Dissemination of the relevant information and training of primary health care should be part of the research programme.
Five topics have been prioritised according to short-, medium- or long-term deliverables (table 2) and depending on burden, perceived need in LMICs, potential impact on health and gaps in knowledge, as well as cost-effectiveness and applicability to LMICs as follows. 1) Severe/uncontrolled asthma is a major health problem and interventions seem to be cost-effective, considerably reducing burden and mortality. They should be tested in various settings and comorbidities should be considered. 2) Modelling for estimates of the impact of interventions for prevention of NCD should be envisaged, and risk charts for COPD and OSAS can be developed. 3) The impact of reduction in obesity on the prevention of SDB should be studied as part of the NCD prevention plan. 4) Assessment of patterns of disease and symptoms in adults presenting to first-level facilities in LMICs should serve as a guide to the development of transverse programmes. 5) Development and evaluation of transverse (integrated) programmes of prevention and care in selected LMICs with different resources and needs employing methods used in the Practical Approach to Lung Health (PAL) 51, Practical Approach to Lung Health and HIV/AIDS in South Africa (PALSA Plus) 50, 60 and other similar programmes. A dominant feature of this programme is the strengthening of health systems through education and the optimal use of resources.
Other interventions should be discussed. Research should be conducted to better appreciate definition, risk factors, burden, prevention and control, and a programme should be started when sufficient knowledge becomes available.
TOPICS FOR FUTURE RESEARCH
Some CRDs are known to be of great importance, but further studies are needed to fully define their burden and/or the methods needed to be established/validated for their assessment in population-based surveys in LMICs. There is a need for operational research, better surveillance of vital statistics, standardisation of lung function testing in LMICs and estimation of costs of improving management of CRD. Once these methods are clarified, research should start in areas including SDB, bronchietasis and pulmonary hypertension.
Acknowledgments
The author affiliations are as follows: J. Bousquet (Hopital Arnaud de Villeneuve and INSERM, Montpellier, France), J. Kiley (National Heart, Lung and Blood Institute (NHLBI), National Institutes of Health, US Dept of Health and Human Services, Bethesda, MD, USA), E.D. Bateman (Health Sciences Faculty, University of Cape Town, South Africa), G. Viegi (Consiglio Nazionale delle Ricerche (CNR) Institute of Clinical Physiology, Pisa, and Biomedicine and Molecular Immunology, Palermo, Italy), A.A. Cruz (Faculdade de Medicina da Bahia, Universidade Federal da Bahia, Brazil), N. Khaltaev (Global Alliance Against Chronic Respiratory Diseases (GARD)/Allergic Rhinitis and its Impact on Asthma (ARIA), Geneva, Switzerland), N. Aït Khaled (International Union Against Tuberculosis and Lung Disease, Paris, France), C.E. Baena-Cagnani (Catholic University, Cordoba, Argentina), M.L. Barreto (Instituto de Saude Coletiva, Federal University of Bahia, Salvador, Bahia, Brazil), N. Billo (International Union Against Tuberculosis and Lung Disease, Paris, France), G.W. Canonica (Allergy and Respiratory Diseases, Dept of Internal Medicine, University of Genoa, Genoa, Italy), K.H. Carlsen (Faculty of Medicine, University of Oslo, Oslo, Norway), N. Chavannes (Leiden University Medical Center, Leiden, The Netherlands), A. Chuchalin (Pulmonology Research Institute and Russian Respiratory Society, Moscow, Russia), J. Drazen (Brigham and Women's Hospital, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, USA), L.M. Fabbri (Università di Modena e Reggio Emilia, Modena, Italy), M.W. Gerbase (University Hospitals of Geneva, Switzerland), M. Humbert (Université Paris-Sud, Service de Pneumologie, Hôpital Antoine-Béclère, Clamart, France), G. Joos (Ghent University Hospital, Ghent, Belgium), M.R. Masjedi (Shahid Beheshti University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran), S. Makino (School of Medicine, Dokkyo University, Japan), K. Rabe (Leiden University Medical Center, Leiden, The Netherlands), T. To (Child Health Evaluative Sciences, Research Institute, The Hospital for Sick Children, Toronto, ON, Canada), L. Zhi (Chinese Medical Association, Beijing, China).
The following authors are also members of the Global Allergy and Asthma European Network (GA2LEN): J. Bousquet, G. Viegi, G.W. Canonica, K.H. Carlsen, L.M. Fabbri, G. Joos and K. Rabe.
The authors of the draft are grateful for the contributions received from: A. Agusti (Universitat de Barcelona, Barcelona, Spain), I. Ahn (University of California, San Francisco, CA, USA), I. Annesi-Maesano (Inserm, Paris, France), I. Ansotegui (Viscaya Hospital, Bilbao, Spain), A.K. Baigenzhin (Euro Asian Respiratory Society, Astana, Kazakhstan), A. Ben Kheder (Hôpital A. Mami, Tunis, Tunisia), K.S. Bennoor (National Institute of Diseases of Chest and Hospital, Mohakhali, Dhaka, Bengladesh), N. Berend (Sydney Medical School, Australia), C. Blaisdell (NHLBI, Bethesda, MD, USA), D. Boayke (Noguchi Memorial Institute for Medical Research, College of Health Sciences, University of Ghana, Legon, Accra, Ghana), S. Bonini (CNR, Rome, Italy), L.P. Boulet (Université Laval, Quebec, QC, Canada), P.J. Bousquet (University Hospital, Nimes, France), C.E. Brightling (University of Leicester, Leicester, UK), P.G. Burney (Imperial College, London, UK), A. Bush (Imperial College, London, UK), S. Buist (Oregon Health and Science University, Portland, OR, USA), W.W. Busse (University of Wisconsin Hospital, Madison, WI, USA), P. Camargos (Departamento de Pediatria da Faculdade de Medicina, Belo Horizonte, Brazil), T.B. Casale (Creighton University, Omaha, NE, USA), M. Cazzola (University of Rome Tor Vergata, Rome, Italy), M. Chan-Yeung (University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong, China), C.Y. Chiang (International Union Against Tuberculosis and Lung Disease, Taipei, Taiwan), E. Chkhartishvili (University Hospital, Tbilissi, Georgia), Y.Z. Chen (Clinic and Education Center of the Capital Institute of Pediatrics, Peking, and Center for Asthma Research and Education, Beijing, China), R. Dahl (University Hospital, Aarhus, Denmark), F. De Blay (University Hospital, Strasbourg, France), P. Demoly (University Hospital of Montpellier, INSERM U657, Hôpital Arnaud de Villeneuve, Montpellier, France), H. Douagui (Centre Hospitalo-Universitaire de Béni-Messous, Algiers, Algeria), D. Dumitrascu (University of Medicine and Pharmacy IULIU HATIEGANU, Cluj-Napoca, Romania), D. Enarson (International Union Against Tuberculosis and Lung Disease, Paris, France), J.L. Eiselé (ERS, Lausanne, Switzerland), L.R. Fairall (Cape Town University, South Africa), F. Kauffmann (Inserm, CESP Centre for Research in Epidemiology and Population Health, Villejuif, France), M. Franchi (Associazione Italiana Pazienti BPCO Onlus, Rome, Italy), D. Gail (NHLBI, Bethesda, MD, USA), R. Gerth van Wijk (Erasmus University, Rotterdam, The Netherlands), P. Godard (University Hospital, Montpellier, France), L. Grouse (University of Washington School of Medicine, Seattle, WA, USA), T. Haahtela (Helsinki University, Finland), E. Hamelmann (Ruhr-University Bochum, Germany), P. Hopewell (University of California, San Francisco, CA, USA), P. Howarth (University Hospital, Southampton, UK), O. Kalayci (University Hospital, Ankara, Turkey), R. Kauppinen (Finnish Lung Institute, Helsinki, Finland), Y.Y. Kim (Seoul National University Hospital, Seoul, Korea), V. Kolek (Czech Alliance against Chronic Respiratory Diseases, Czech Pneumological and Phthiseological Society, University Hospital, Olomouc, Czech Republic), M. Kowalski (University Hospital, Lodz, Poland), P. Kuna (University Hospital, Lodz, Poland), L.T.T. Le (University of Medicine and Pharmacy, Hochiminh City, Vietnam), E. Lemarié (University Hospital, Tours, France), K. Lodrup-Carlsen (University Hospital, Oslo, Norway), W. McNicholas (University Hospital, Dublin, Ireland), T. Maglakelidze (University Hospital, Tbilissi, Georgia), J.L. Malo (Sacré Coeur Hospital, Montréal, Canada), E. Mantzouranis (University Hospital, Herakelion, Greece), S. Mavale (Children’s Hospital, Maputo, Mozambique), Y. Mohammad (Tishreen University School of Medicine, Lattakia, Syria), M. Morais-Almeida (SPAIC, Lisbon, Portugal), J. Mullol (University of Barcelona, Barcelona, Spain), S. Nardini (General Hospital, Vittorio Veneto, Italy), E. Nizankowska-Mogilnicka (University Hospital, Crakow, Poland), P. Noel (NHLBI, Bethesda, MD, USA), K. Ohta (Teikyo University School of Medicine, Tokyo, Japan), P. O'Byrne (McMaster University, Hamilton, ON, Canada), S. Ouedraogo (Centre Hospitalier Universitaire Pédiatrique Charles de Gaulle, Ouagadougou, Burkina Faso), N. Papadopoulos (University Hospital, Athens, Greece), G. Passalacqua (Allergy and Respiratory Diseases, University of Genoa, Genoa, Italy), R. Pawankar (Nippon Medical School, Bunkyo-ku, Tokyo, Japan), R. Perez-Padilla (University Hospital, Mexico City, Mexico), T. Popov (Clinic of Allergy and Asthma, Alexander's University Hospital, Sofia, Bulgaria), A. Punturieri (NHLBI, Bethesda, MD, USA), J. Rosado-Pinto (Lisbon, Portugal), E. Rabehevitra (University Hospital, Anatanarivo, Madagascar), M. Salapatas (EFA European Federation of Allergy and Airways Diseases Patients' Association, Brussels, Belgium), B. Samolinski (Medical University of Warsaw, Warsaw, Poland), H.J. Schünemann (McMaster University, Hamilton, ON, Canada), N. Siafakas (University Hospital Heraklion, Greece), F.E.R. Simons (University of Manitoba, Winnipeg, MB, Canada), J.C. Sisul (Sociedad Paraguaya de Alergia Asma e Inmunología, Paraguay Asuncion, Paraguay), R. Smith (NHLBI, Bethesda, MD, USA), U. Solimene (Faculty of Medicine, University of Milan, Italy), T. Sooronbaev (National Centre Cardiology and Internal Medicine, Bishkek, Kyrgystan), M.A. Tag El-Din (Ain-Shams University, Cairo, Egypt), V. Taggart (NHLBI, Bethesda, MD, USA), A. Tsoy (Euro Asian Respiratory Society, Astana, Kazakhstan), M. Twery (NHLBI, Bethesda, MD, USA), A. Valiulis (University Hospital, Vilnius, Lithuania), E. Valovirta (Terveystalo Turku, Finland), C. Van Weel (Radboud University Nijmegen Medical Centre, Nijmegen, The Netherlands), L. Vardy (Health Canada, Ottawa, ON, Canada), G. Weinmann (NHLBI, Bethesda, MD, USA), A. Yorgancioglu (Celal Bayar University, Medical School, Manisa, Turkey), O. Yusuf (The Allergy and Asthma Institute, Islamabad, Pakistan), H. Zar (University Hospital, Cape Town, South Africa), N. Zhong (University Hospital, Ghanzhou, China), T. Zuberbier (Charité, Berlin, Germany).
- Received January 25, 2010.
- Accepted March 1, 2010.
- ©ERS 2010