ArticleRespiratory research2024
Exertional breathlessness related to medical conditions in middle-aged people: the population-based SCAPIS study of more than 25,000 men and women.
Article in Respiratory research, 2024. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 13 papers, 1 of them a synthesis that pooled it.
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Who cites it
13 citing papers in PubMed, 1 synthesis or guideline pooled it, 16 citations in OpenAlex.
- Prevalence and correlates of breathlessness in adults: an umbrella review and updated systematic review with meta-analysis in general and clinical populations.European respiratory review : an official journal of the European Respiratory Society · 2025Pooled it
- Prevalence and impacts of breathlessness in South Africa: an exploratory, cross-sectional population study.Journal of global health · 2026Article
- Breathlessness limiting exertion and under- and unemployment: results from a national, online population survey.BMC public health · 2026Article
- Using AI to determine optimal cost-effective diagnostic pathways for chronic breathlessness.NPJ primary care respiratory medicine · 2026Article
- Expected breathlessness is overestimated compared to experienced: a mobile ecological momentary assessment study.ERJ open research · 2026Article
- Gait Biomechanics Across BMI Categories in Adults: A Cross-Sectional Study.Healthcare (Basel, Switzerland) · 2026Article
- Global disparities in chronic dyspnoea prevalence in population-based studies: a comprehensive literature review.European respiratory review : an official journal of the European Respiratory Society · 2026Review
- Quality of life associated with breathlessness in the multinational Burden of Obstructive Lung Disease (BOLD) study: A cross-sectional analysis.Pulmonology · 2025Article
- Anxiety and depression impact exertional breathlessness in daily life and during exercise testing: the CanCOLD study.ERJ open research · 2025Article
- The feasibility of implementing clinical decision support system software in the outpatient assessment of breathlessness: Cardio-LungHealth and Everton in the Community.ERJ open research · 2025Article
- Locus of control and breathlessness: a cross-sectional analysis of 28 730 people.ERJ open research · 2025Article
- Breathlessness in the general population.Current opinion in supportive and palliative care · 2025Review
- Factors most strongly associated with breathlessness in a population aged 50-64 years.ERJ open research · 2024Article
Corrections and comments
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Authors and funding
24 authors at 7 institutions in 2 countries.
Funding
Abstract
backgroundBreathlessness is common in the population and can be related to a range of medical conditions. We aimed to evaluate the burden of breathlessness related to different medical conditions in a middle-aged population.
methodsCross-sectional analysis of the population-based Swedish CArdioPulmonary bioImage Study of adults aged 50-64 years. Breathlessness (modified Medical Research Council [mMRC] ≥ 2) was evaluated in relation to self-reported symptoms, stress, depression; physician-diagnosed conditions; measured body mass index (BMI), spirometry, venous haemoglobin concentration, coronary artery calcification and stenosis [computer tomography (CT) angiography], and pulmonary emphysema (high-resolution CT). For each condition, the prevalence and breathlessness population attributable fraction (PAF) were calculated, overall and by sex, smoking history, and presence/absence of self-reported cardiorespiratory disease.
resultsWe included 25,948 people aged 57.5 ± [SD] 4.4; 51% women; 37% former and 12% current smokers; 43% overweight (BMI 25.0-29.9), 21% obese (BMI ≥ 30); 25% with respiratory disease, 14% depression, 9% cardiac disease, and 3% anemia. Breathlessness was present in 3.7%. Medical conditions most strongly related to the breathlessness prevalence were (PAF 95%CI): overweight and obesity (59.6-66.0%), stress (31.6-76.8%), respiratory disease (20.1-37.1%), depression (17.1-26.6%), cardiac disease (6.3-12.7%), anemia (0.8-3.3%), and peripheral arterial disease (0.3-0.8%). Stress was the main factor in women and current smokers.
conclusionBreathlessness mainly relates to overweight/obesity and stress and to a lesser extent to comorbidities like respiratory, depressive, and cardiac disorders among middle-aged people in a high-income setting-supporting the importance of lifestyle interventions to reduce the burden of breathlessness in the population.
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