GOLD 2021 Strategy Report: Implications for Asthma–COPD Overlap

Abstract

Miguel Roman-Rodriguez,1 Alan Kaplan2 1Primary Care Respiratory Research Unit, Instituto de Investigación Sanitaria de Baleares (IdISBa), Palma de Mallorca, Spain; 2Family Physician Airways Group of Canada, University of Toronto, Toronto, ON, CanadaCorrespondence: Miguel Roman-Rodriguez Email [email protected]: In its 2021 strategy report, the Global Initiative for Chronic Obstructive Lung Disease states: “we no longer refer to asthma-COPD overlap (ACO), instead we emphasize that asthma and COPD are different disorders, although they may […] coexist in an individual patient. If a concurrent diagnosis of asthma is suspected, pharmacotherapy should primarily follow asthma guidelines, but pharmacological and non-pharmacological approaches may also be needed for their COPD.” What does this mean for the treating physician? In this review, we explore the implications of this new guidance on treating patients with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, arguing for a personalized approach to treatment.Keywords: COPD, asthma, asthma–COPD overlap, inhaled corticosteroid, bronchodilator

Keywords

• copd
• asthma
• asthma–copd overlap
• inhaled corticosteroid
• bronchodilator