It is widely recognised that smoking has a negative impact on the onset and progression of Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease (COPD). With high rates of smoking in people with COPD, smoking cessation is one of the most important therapeutic interventions for COPD.
The first comprehensive systematic review and meta-analysis to investigate the impact of smoking cessation on the presentation, prognosis and associated features of COPD was recently published. The findings indicate that smoking cessation significantly improved specific key indicators of pulmonary function in patients with COPD such as forced expiratory volume in one second (FEV1% predicted) and forced vital capacity (FEV1/FVC).
Further, the analysis found that smoking cessation in patients with COPD reduced symptoms such as breathlessness and improved exercise endurance and enhanced blood oxygen levels. The authors concluded that stopping smoking may reduce mortality due to COPD.
It is important to convey the message to patients with COPD who smoke that it is never too late to quit, and to highlight that cessation may provide specific benefits for this chronic respiratory condition.
Smoking cessation is a crucial and impactful intervention that should routinely be provided to all patients with COPD who smoke. Health professionals can use the Ask, Advise, Help (AAH) model which is an evidence-based way of structuring a conversation about smoking that is fast, simple and effective, and connects patients to best practice smoking cessation care.