Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease is a health problem

Abstract

Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease is characterized by the chronic limitation of the airflow, almost irreversible and mainly associated to tobacco smoke. It is an underdiagnosed disease with a high morbimortality, meaning a health problem of high magnitude. It is the fourth cause of death in the Caribbean countries and it is expected its prevalence will still increase, representing a high sanitary cost.   In Cuba, it is the fifth cause of death with an increasing tendency in the next years, being a health problem because it causes frequent admissions in the Seriously-ill Care Units, frequently having   an unfavorable evolution. The province of Matanzas is not excluded from this. Smoking and environmental pollution are among the risk factors favoring this entity, increasing this entity morbidity with complications that make hospital staying longer and mortality higher.