Grant: Travel Awards - Institute Community Support

Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) is the fourth leading cause of death and cardiovascular disease (CVD) is the leading cause of death in the world. COPD patients are at higher risk for CVD, yet cardiovascular (CV) risk is not routinely assessed in COPD care. Identifying which COPD patients that will progress to CVD is the first step in development a new CV risk model for COPD patients. We collected data from CanCOLD, a longitudinal population-based study of adults over 40 years. Subjects were assessed at baseline with clinical questionnaires and lung function tests and followed for 3 years. A total of 1115 subjects (533 with COPD and 582 without COPD) finished follow up. Cardiac events were defined as new heart disease, stroke, heart failure or arrhythmia. Statistical analysis was done to determine association of COPD with cardiac events, adjusting for age, sex and smoking. The odds of having cardiac disease was increased for those with moderate COPD by over 60% compared to those without COPD. Severe COPD subjects had over twice the likelihood of having cardiac disease compared to non-COPD. As lung function and exercise capacity increase, the odds of having a cardiac event are reduced. Increased exercise capacity in COPD reduces the likelihood of a new cardiac event by almost two-thirds, and could be a good indicator of decreased CV risk. Our findings suggest that lung physiology is important as CV risk factor COPD.