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Prevalence, severity and impacts of breathlessness in Indian adults : An exploratory, nationally representative, cross-sectional online survey

Kochovska, Slavica ; Iyer, Rajam ; Chang, Sungwon ; Ferreira, Diana ; Brunelli, Vanessa N. ; Kinchin, Irina ; Eckert, Danny J. ; Clark, Joseph ; Sandberg, Jacob LU orcid and Ekström, Magnus LU orcid , et al. (2024) In PLOS global public health 4(5 May).
Abstract

There are no known estimates of the prevalence, severity and impacts from breathlessness in low- and middle-income countries. This study aimed to explore the prevalence, severity, self-attributed underlying conditions and impacts of breathlessness limiting exertion in community-dwelling adults in India. This exploratory, population-based online survey recruited a pre-planned sample of 3,000 adult respondents stratified by age, sex and rurality (quotas as per the 2011 Indian National Census). Measures included: demographics; breathlessness limiting exertion (modified Medical Research [mMRC] scale); health-related quality of life (EQ-5D-5L); and disability (World Health Organisation’s Disability Assessment Schedule 2.0 12-item... (More)

There are no known estimates of the prevalence, severity and impacts from breathlessness in low- and middle-income countries. This study aimed to explore the prevalence, severity, self-attributed underlying conditions and impacts of breathlessness limiting exertion in community-dwelling adults in India. This exploratory, population-based online survey recruited a pre-planned sample of 3,000 adult respondents stratified by age, sex and rurality (quotas as per the 2011 Indian National Census). Measures included: demographics; breathlessness limiting exertion (modified Medical Research [mMRC] scale); health-related quality of life (EQ-5D-5L); and disability (World Health Organisation’s Disability Assessment Schedule 2.0 12-item questionnaire [WHODAS-12]). Respondents (n = 3,046) had a mean age of 38 years (SD 15); 57% were male, 59% lived in rural areas and 33% had completed 12th grade. Breathlessness limiting exertion (mMRC ≥1) was reported by 44%, mostly attributed to poor nutrition (28%), lung conditions excluding tuberculosis (17%) or anaemia (13%). Compared to those without breathlessness, a higher proportion of people with breathlessness (mMRC ≥1) reported problems across all EQ-5D-5L dimensions. Most people reporting breathlessness (81%) indicated the symptom had adversely affected their normal activities. Disability scores (WHODAS-12 total and individual domains) increased as breathlessness worsened. To conclude, in India, conservative estimates indicate 626 million people live with breathlessness of whom 52 million people live with severe breathlessness. The symptom is associated with poorer health-related quality of life and marked disability, including reduced ability to perform daily activities.

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publishing date
type
Contribution to journal
publication status
published
subject
in
PLOS global public health
volume
4
issue
5 May
article number
e0002655
publisher
Public Library of Science (PLoS)
external identifiers
  • pmid:38696528
  • scopus:85195520813
ISSN
2767-3375
DOI
10.1371/journal.pgph.0002655
language
English
LU publication?
yes
id
daac5a84-b9f6-44e4-8e72-ca61310f0101
date added to LUP
2024-08-19 14:19:24
date last changed
2025-08-05 23:37:09
@article{daac5a84-b9f6-44e4-8e72-ca61310f0101,
  abstract     = {{<p>There are no known estimates of the prevalence, severity and impacts from breathlessness in low- and middle-income countries. This study aimed to explore the prevalence, severity, self-attributed underlying conditions and impacts of breathlessness limiting exertion in community-dwelling adults in India. This exploratory, population-based online survey recruited a pre-planned sample of 3,000 adult respondents stratified by age, sex and rurality (quotas as per the 2011 Indian National Census). Measures included: demographics; breathlessness limiting exertion (modified Medical Research [mMRC] scale); health-related quality of life (EQ-5D-5L); and disability (World Health Organisation’s Disability Assessment Schedule 2.0 12-item questionnaire [WHODAS-12]). Respondents (n = 3,046) had a mean age of 38 years (SD 15); 57% were male, 59% lived in rural areas and 33% had completed 12<sup>th</sup> grade. Breathlessness limiting exertion (mMRC ≥1) was reported by 44%, mostly attributed to poor nutrition (28%), lung conditions excluding tuberculosis (17%) or anaemia (13%). Compared to those without breathlessness, a higher proportion of people with breathlessness (mMRC ≥1) reported problems across all EQ-5D-5L dimensions. Most people reporting breathlessness (81%) indicated the symptom had adversely affected their normal activities. Disability scores (WHODAS-12 total and individual domains) increased as breathlessness worsened. To conclude, in India, conservative estimates indicate 626 million people live with breathlessness of whom 52 million people live with severe breathlessness. The symptom is associated with poorer health-related quality of life and marked disability, including reduced ability to perform daily activities.</p>}},
  author       = {{Kochovska, Slavica and Iyer, Rajam and Chang, Sungwon and Ferreira, Diana and Brunelli, Vanessa N. and Kinchin, Irina and Eckert, Danny J. and Clark, Joseph and Sandberg, Jacob and Ekström, Magnus and Currow, David and Rajan, Sujeet}},
  issn         = {{2767-3375}},
  language     = {{eng}},
  number       = {{5 May}},
  publisher    = {{Public Library of Science (PLoS)}},
  series       = {{PLOS global public health}},
  title        = {{Prevalence, severity and impacts of breathlessness in Indian adults : An exploratory, nationally representative, cross-sectional online survey}},
  url          = {{http://dx.doi.org/10.1371/journal.pgph.0002655}},
  doi          = {{10.1371/journal.pgph.0002655}},
  volume       = {{4}},
  year         = {{2024}},
}