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Exertional breathlessness related to medical conditions in middle-aged people : the population-based SCAPIS study of more than 25,000 men and women

Ekström, Magnus LU orcid ; Sundh, Josefin ; Andersson, Anders ; Angerås, Oskar ; Blomberg, Anders ; Börjesson, Mats ; Caidahl, Kenneth ; Emilsson, Össur Ingi ; Engvall, Jan and Frykholm, Erik , et al. (2024) In Respiratory Research 25(1).
Abstract

Background: Breathlessness 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. Methods: Cross-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,... (More)

Background: Breathlessness 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. Methods: Cross-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. Results: We 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. Conclusion: Breathlessness 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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organization
publishing date
type
Contribution to journal
publication status
published
subject
keywords
Diseases, Dyspnea, Epidemiology, Obesity
in
Respiratory Research
volume
25
issue
1
article number
127
publisher
BioMed Central (BMC)
external identifiers
  • pmid:38493081
  • scopus:85187930690
ISSN
1465-9921
DOI
10.1186/s12931-024-02766-6
language
English
LU publication?
yes
id
93c574c1-b3c9-42df-8e95-689d39351c8e
date added to LUP
2024-04-02 15:32:10
date last changed
2024-04-16 20:00:16
@article{93c574c1-b3c9-42df-8e95-689d39351c8e,
  abstract     = {{<p>Background: Breathlessness 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. Methods: Cross-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. Results: We 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. Conclusion: Breathlessness 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.</p>}},
  author       = {{Ekström, Magnus and Sundh, Josefin and Andersson, Anders and Angerås, Oskar and Blomberg, Anders and Börjesson, Mats and Caidahl, Kenneth and Emilsson, Össur Ingi and Engvall, Jan and Frykholm, Erik and Grote, Ludger and Hedman, Kristofer and Jernberg, Tomas and Lindberg, Eva and Malinovschi, Andrei and Nyberg, André and Rullman, Eric and Sandberg, Jacob and Sköld, Magnus and Stenfors, Nikolai and Sundström, Johan and Tanash, Hanan and Zaigham, Suneela and Carlhäll, Carl Johan}},
  issn         = {{1465-9921}},
  keywords     = {{Diseases; Dyspnea; Epidemiology; Obesity}},
  language     = {{eng}},
  number       = {{1}},
  publisher    = {{BioMed Central (BMC)}},
  series       = {{Respiratory Research}},
  title        = {{Exertional breathlessness related to medical conditions in middle-aged people : the population-based SCAPIS study of more than 25,000 men and women}},
  url          = {{http://dx.doi.org/10.1186/s12931-024-02766-6}},
  doi          = {{10.1186/s12931-024-02766-6}},
  volume       = {{25}},
  year         = {{2024}},
}