ArticlePloS one2013
The coexistence of asthma and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD): prevalence and risk factors in young, middle-aged and elderly people from the general population.
Article in PloS one, 2013. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 145 papers, 4 of them syntheses that pooled it.
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The trial behind it
Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.
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Who cites it
145 citing papers in PubMed, 4 syntheses or guidelines pooled it, 339 citations in OpenAlex.
- Global prevalence of asthma-COPD overlap (ACO) in the general population: a systematic review and meta-analysis.Respiratory research · 2019Pooled it
- Pharmacological mechanism of roflumilast in the treatment of asthma-COPD overlap.Drug design, development and therapy · 2018Pooled it
- Clinical characteristics of the asthma-COPD overlap syndrome--a systematic review.International journal of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease · 2015Pooled it
- Pooled it
- Reliability, validity and responsiveness of E-RS:COPD in patients with spirometric asthma-COPD overlap.Respiratory research · 2019Trial
- A randomized multicenter Phase II study of perioperative tiotropium intervention in gastric cancer patients with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease.International journal of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease · 2015Trial
- Diet Quality, Dietary Inflammatory Potential, and All-Cause Mortality in U.S. Adults With Asthma-COPD Overlap.Food science & nutrition · 2026Article
- Advancing Precision Approaches to Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease.Tuberculosis and respiratory diseases · 2026Review
- Prevalence of Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease (COPD) in Sri Lankan adults: results of a cross sectional study.BMC pulmonary medicine · 2026Article
- Prevalence and Spatial Distribution of Chronic Respiratory Diseases in Dar es Salaam, Tanzania: Hydrological and Household Influences.GeoHealth · 2026Article
- The therapeutic effects of dupilumab in asthma-chronic obstructive pulmonary disease overlap and pure asthma: a pilot study.Journal of thoracic disease · 2026Article
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- Effectiveness of Benralizumab in Reducing Asthma and COPD Exacerbations in Patients with Severe Asthma and Concomitant COPD: Real-World Evidence from the ZEPHYR-5 Study.International journal of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease · 2026Article
- Asthma and chronic obstructive disease overlap (ACO), a systematic review of prevalence and co-morbidity factors based on diagnostic criteria.Journal of pharmaceutical policy and practice · 2026Review
- 18-yr cumulative incidence of respiratory outcomes is related to employment sectors in a general population sample.Scientific reports · 2025Article
- Prevalence and associated factors of asthma and COPD among adults in Iran based on the 2021 STEPS survey.Scientific reports · 2025Article
- Chronic lung diseases (Asthma and COPD) among middle-aged and older populations in India: social, individual, and household determinants and their associations with geriatric syndromes.Archives of public health = Archives belges de sante publique · 2025Article
- Incidence, risk factors, and outcomes of respiratory related hospitalizations in older patients with COPD, asthma, and bronchiectasis.Scientific reports · 2025Article
- Article
85 more citing papers are in PubMed but not listed here.
Corrections and comments
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Authors and funding
14 authors at 8 institutions in 1 country.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
backgroundThe joint distribution of asthma and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) has not been well described. This study aims at determining the prevalence of self-reported physician diagnoses of asthma, COPD and of the asthma-COPD overlap syndrome and to assess whether these conditions share a common set of risk factors.
methodsA screening questionnaire on respiratory symptoms, diagnoses and risk factors was administered by mail or phone to random samples of the general Italian population aged 20-44 (n = 5163) 45-64 (n = 2167) and 65-84 (n = 1030) in the frame of the multicentre Gene Environment Interactions in Respiratory Diseases (GEIRD) study.
resultsA physician diagnosis of asthma or COPD (emphysema/chronic bronchitis/COPD) was reported by 13% and 21% of subjects aged <65 and 65-84 years respectively. Aging was associated with a marked decrease in the prevalence of diagnosed asthma (from 8.2% to 1.6%) and with a marked increase in the prevalence of diagnosed COPD (from 3.3% to 13.3%). The prevalence of the overlap of asthma and COPD was 1.6% (1.3%-2.0%), 2.1% (1.5%-2.8%) and 4.5% (3.2%-5.9%) in the 20-44, 45-64 and 65-84 age groups. Subjects with both asthma and COPD diagnoses were more likely to have respiratory symptoms, physical impairment, and to report hospital admissions compared to asthma or COPD alone (p<0.01). Age, sex, education and smoking showed different and sometimes opposite associations with the three conditions.
conclusionAsthma and COPD are common in the general population, and they coexist in a substantial proportion of subjects. The asthma-COPD overlap syndrome represents an important clinical phenotype that deserves more medical attention and further research.
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Registered trials
Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.