The Burden of Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease and Its Risk Factors in the Iranian Population: Results from the Global Burden of Disease Study 2016

Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) is an important public health challenge. This report studies the burden of COPD and its risk factors in the Iranian population.

This study has used the data from a study by the Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation (IHME) on the disability adjusted life year (DALY) of COPD and its risk factors in Iran in 2016.

Based on the IHME results, the DALY was 201.8 per 100 000 population in 1999 and 303.1 per 100 000 population in 2016. About 0.47% of the total estimated DALYs in Iran (1990) were related to COPD. The risk of COPD attributable to tobacco was 140.3 DALYs per 100 000, and air pollution and occupational hazards were responsible for 98.4 and 39.5 DALYs per 100 000 population. In Iran, the DALY of COPD attributable to behavioral and environmental risk factors was 75.7% in 1990 and 91.6% in 2016.

Health policy makers need to have a holistic approach in order to decrease the burden of COPD in the future years. Targeting behavioral and environmental risk factors requires a strong organizational and social commitment to health