Context

It is estimated that there are 3 million persons in the UK with COPD [2].

COPD cases comprise over 1 million hospital bed days every year in England [1]. 1 in 8 medical admissions are secondary to COPD [3]. This group of patients will commonly present to the emergency department (ED) when they suffer an exacerbation of their disease.

COPD is believed to be the only major cause of death whose incidence is on the rise in the UK and Britain has one of the highest death rates from this condition in Europe [3].

There are approximately 30 000 deaths / year attributable to COPD [1].

It is therefore vital that the emergency physician has a good knowledge of COPD and its management in order to improve its associated morbidity and mortality. It is also important to recognise which patients may be safely treated in the community to avoid unnecessary admissions.

This session aims to outline the management of COPD relevant to the ED. In particular with reference to the evidence based guidelines published by the National Institute of Clinical Excellence (NICE) in 2010 [4].