Cough-specific QOL predicts outcomes in patients with interstitial lung disease

Among patients with interstitial lung disease (ILD), cough-specific quality of life (QOL) is independently associated with adverse outcomes, specifically respiratory hospitalization, death, and lung transplantation, as reported in a study.

The study used data from the Pulmonary Fibrosis Foundation Registry, a multicentre population of well-characterized patients with ILD. A total of 1,447 patients were included in the analysis.

Researchers analysed the associations between patient factors and baseline scores on the Leicester cough questionnaire (LCQ), a cough-specific QOL tool, using a proportional odds model. They also evaluated associations between baseline LCQ scores and patient-centred clinical outcomes, as well as pulmonary function parameters, by applying a multivariable proportional hazards model, adjusted for clinically relevant variables, including measures of disease severity.

In the analyses, worse cough-specific QOL was frequently observed among patients of younger age, with a diagnosis of “other ILD,” with gastroesophageal reflux disease, and who had lower percentage predicted forced vital capacity.

Of note, a one-point decrease in LCQ score (indicating lower cough-specific QOL) correlated with a 6.5-percent increased risk of respiratory-related hospitalization (hazard ratio [HR], 1.065, 95 percent confidence interval [CI], 1.025–1.107), a 7.4-percent greater risk of death (HR, 1.074, 95 percent CI, 1.020–1.130), and an 8.7-percent higher risk of lung transplant (HR, 1.087, 95 percent CI, 1.022–1.156).

A common symptom of ILD, cough negatively affects health-related QOL. The present data indicate that cough-specific QOL may predict lung disease progression, respiratory hospitalizations, and mortality.