A Screening Study to Determine the Prevalence of Airway Disease in Heroin Smokers.

Over the last 20 years smoking has become the most common method of heroin use and increasing numbers of heroin smokers are presenting to local medical services, before the age of 40 years, with severe airway disease. To determine COPD prevalence we recruited 129 subjects from two local community drug services, of whom 107 were heroin smokers. We collected demographic, medical and treatment data, smoking history (including cannabis and opiates) and details of symptoms including MRC dyspnoea.