COPD associated with elevated risk of secondary spontaneous pneumothorax

Patients with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) face an increased risk of secondary spontaneous pneumothorax, as reported in a study from Taiwan.

Researchers used the Longitudinal Health Insurance Database and identified 65,063 patients with COPD (mean age 66.28 years, 60 percent male). None of the patients were younger than 40 years, had incomplete records, or had received a diagnosis of pneumothorax before the index date.

Propensity score matching was used to establish a control group that comprised individuals of similar age, sex, and comorbidities as COPD patients. All participants were followed up until they developed pneumothorax, reached the study’s end, withdrew from the insurance program, or passed away.

Secondary spontaneous pneumothorax occurred in 607 participants (9.3 percent of the cohort) during the follow-up period. The corresponding incidence rate of secondary spontaneous pneumothorax was 12.10 per 10,000 person-years in COPD patients and 6.68 per 10,000 person-years in those without COPD.

Furthermore, in the COPD group, secondary spontaneous pneumothorax tended to occur more frequently among patients with comorbidities such as atrial fibrillation, congestive heart failure, coronary artery disease, diabetes mellitus, hypertension, and cancer than among those without these comorbidities. This was seen after conducting a multivariable Cox regression analysis adjusted for age, sex, and other comorbidities.