For general health, do COPD rates differ by ethnicity/race in women 50-85 years old?

Purpose: Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) is a diagnosis with increasingly significant public health and economic implications, but there is limited research exploring racial and ethnic differences in COPD rates among genders. Therefore, the purpose of this study was to assess whether COPD rates differ by ethnicity/race in women 50-85 years old. Methods: This cross sectional analysis used 2014 BRFSS data for females 50 years and older from Alabama, Arkansas, Kentucky, and West Virginia. Multiple logistic regression analysis was used to assess the relationship between COPD and ethnicity/race while controlling for asthma, tobacco use, education level, employment status, income level, and healthcare access. Results: Few women 50 to 85 years old reported COPD (15-18%), most were white (73-95%), less were black (2-24%), and only a few were of "other" ethnicity/race (3-4%). After controlling for psychosocial and demographic factors, African Americans were about 2 to 3 times less likely to report COPD than other races in Alabama, Arkansas, and Kentucky. Additionally, COPD was significantly related to asthma, employment status, and tobacco use across all states. Conclusions: COPD was significantly related to ethnicity/race across three states (Alabama, Arkansas, and Kentucky), and it was related to asthma, employment status, and tobacco use across all states in samples representative of females 50 to 85 years old. Due to the cross sectional nature of the study, comorbidities and the progression of COPD were not accounted for. Nevertheless, screening African Americans for COPD in primary practice is recommended if the patient presents with indicating symptoms. Moreover, primary care clinicians should always educate and screen all patients with a history of tobacco use or asthma for COPD.