Use of Inhalers and their Impact on the Quality of Life of Patients with Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease

Abstract

Objective: to determine the impact on quality of life in the use of inhalers in patients with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (copd). Methods: analytical and cross-sectional study. Patients using inhalers, aged 40 to 85 years, diagnosed with copd, attending the Family Medicine Unit (fmu) no. 28 of the Mexican Institute of Social Security Institute (imss) were included. The evaluation of the technique of using inhalers was carried out through a checklist, quality of life was measured using the copd Assessment Test (cat), adherence to treatment was carried out using the Morinsky-Green test, staging the degree of severity of copd was implemented on the Medical Research Council (mrc) dyspnoea scale; the progression of the disease, exacerbations, hospitalizations over the past year, as well as the use of oxygen therapy were also analyzed.  Results: a total of 330 participants were included, of whom 220 were women (60.4%), with an average age of 74 years, interquartile range (ir) 66.83, with adherence to pharmacological treatment in 313 patients (94.8%), of whom 129 showed an adequate technique of use of inhalers (39.1%). The highest number of exacerbations and hospitalizations were found in patients with high and very high impact on quality of life. Risk factors found impacting the quality of life of these patients were: inadequate technique of use of inhalers, which showed an or of 5.35 (ci 95% 1.92-14.86), as well as age and body mass index (bmi). Conclusions: the inadequate technique of use, older age and bmi <23 are variables that deteriorate the quality of life of copd patients. The correct use of inhalers should be an indispensable part of treating copd patients.