Pulmonary Hypertension in Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease COPD: Prevalence and Demographic Correlates in a Hospital Based Cross Sectional Study
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Abstract
Background: Pulmonary hypertension (PH) is a common and clinically significant complication of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) however, data from Afghanistan remain limited. Establishing local prevalence is crucial for regional comparisons and health policy.
Methods: We conducted a retrospective cross-sectional study at Aliabad Teaching Hospital, Kabul, between March 2019 and March 2020. Patients aged ≥35 years with COPD were included. Those with alternative causes of PH were excluded. Data on demographics and echocardiographic findings were extracted from hospital records. PH was defined as an estimated systolic pulmonary artery pressure (sPAP) ≥40 mmHg on echocardiography. Descriptive statistics and multivariable logistic regression were used for data analysis.
Results: A total of 348 COPD patients were enrolled. Among those 138 were diagnosed with PH, making an overall prevalence of 39.7% (95% CI: 34.6–44.7). In multivariable analysis, female sex was strongly associated with PH (adjusted OR 3.27, 95% CI: 1.95–5.47, P < 0.001), and age ≥60 years was also identified as an independent predictor (aOR 1.89, 95% CI: 1.12–3.20, P = 0.017).
Conclusion: PH was present in nearly 40% of hospitalized COPD patients, indicating a substantial comorbidity burden. Older age and female sex were independently associated with PH. These findings support consideration of targeted echocardiographic evaluation in high-risk patients. As this study was conducted in a hospital-based population, the results should be interpreted with caution and require confirmation in larger, population-based studies before generalizing to the national level.
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