Current Controversies in Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease. A Report from the Global Initiative for Chronic Obstructive Lung Disease Scientific Committee

Research demonstrates that Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease (COPD) is not only preventable, but treatable.Despite these efforts, COPD continues to claim many lives, and disable many more, without any cure in sight.Our inability to reverse the devastating course of COPD is in part due to the fact that it is often recognized late, after the disease has advanced.In addition, COPD is a complex disease with protean pulmonary and non-pulmonary manifestations punctuated by episodic escalations of respiratory symptoms in a predominately older patient population with multiple comorbidities.The major objective of the Global Initiative for Chronic Obstructive Lung Disease (GOLD) is to improve the diagnosis, assessment and prevention of COPD by increasing awareness while simultaneously stimulating new research.GOLD publishes an annual report that provides recommendations, however, it is clear that some major issues regarding COPD management are not certain, and that limited or contradictory data exists in important areas that requires further information to guide recommendations.The GOLD scientific committee recently conducted a public forum where controversial topics were discussed to define the current gaps in knowledge regarding the diagnosis, assessment and treatment of COPD.Herein, we summarize the results of that discussion.