Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD): international data

COPD is a relatively new term describing a disease with varied diagnostic criteria, the prevalence of which is heavily influenced by a population's age distribution and smoking habits. COPD typically presents late in life and inclusion and classification in mortality records is known to be inconsistent. These issues combined with differences in epidemiological study design make international comparisons of COPD morbidity and mortality very difficult. The following data should therefore be interpreted with caution. 

Chart 1 and Chart 2 present mortality rates in males and females due to COPD from the World Health Organization (WHO) Morbidity Database (2015 update, extracted October 2016). The 2013 data from Scotland included in chart 1 ranks Scottish men third highest (approx. 54 per 100,000) for COPD mortality. Chart 2 shows that Scottish women ranked second highest (approx. 56 per 100,000) for COPD mortality compared with other industrialised countries in this sample.

Burden of disease studies

The Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation (IHME) is responsible for the Global Burden of Disease study, which produces international comparisons of the burden of disease. These estimates are expressed as Disability Adjusted Life Years (DALYs) lost due to a particular cause. DALYs combine years of life lost together with years of life lived with disability and present an overall picture of the impact of a condition. The GBD has published a profile for Scotland which shows comparisons with similar countries and estimates that COPD was the 6th largest contributor to combined mortality and morbidity in Scotland in 2021, rising by approximately 4% since 2011.

Other data sources

Figure 1 below shows COPD incidence in 2021 within the World Health Organisation European region as age-standardised rates per 100,000. The map was sourced from the International Respiratory Coalition with underlying data sourced from the Global Burden of Disease Study. The UK reports a rate of 238 cases per 100,000 population, which is the highest in the region. This compares to a rate of 178.9 cases per 100,000 population across Europe. More detailed statistics on international comparisons of COPD including prevalence, mortality and DALYs can also be obtained through the International Respiratory Coalition’s content on COPD.