Symptoms of COPD in the absence of airflow obstruction are more indicative of pre-COPD than overdiagnosis.

Background: Dysfunction of the small airways is a precursor of COPD but is not detectable on standard spirometric testing until significant destruction has occurred. A proportion of COPD patients have a forced expiratory volume in 1 s (FEV)/forced vital capacity (FVC) <0.7 which is greater than the lower limit of normal (LLN), when adjusted for their age and sex.

Bronchiectasis Occurs Independently of Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease in Alpha-1 Antitrypsin Deficiency.

Introduction: Bronchiectasis occurs in patients with alpha-1 antitrypsin deficiency (AATD), but it is unknown whether an association exists independently of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD). We assessed whether bronchiectasis was associated with COPD in our cohort, and whether it has clinical significance for lung function decline, exacerbation rate, or symptoms.

Study Design And Methods: PiZZ, PiSZ, and PiMZ patients from the Birmingham AATD Research Database were studied.

The prevalence of bronchiectasis in patients with alpha-1 antitrypsin deficiency: initial report of EARCO.

Background: Although bronchiectasis has been recognised as a feature of some patients with Alpha1-Antitrypsin deficiency the prevalence and characteristics are not widely known. We wished to determine the prevalence of bronchiectasis and patient characteristics. The first cohort of patients recruited to the EARCO (European Alpha1 Research Collaboration) International Registry data base by the end of 2021 was analysed for radiological evidence of both emphysema and bronchiectasis as well as baseline demographic features.