Faculty of Medicine

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Start date: 2025Subject: search.filters.subject.COPD

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    EVALUATING CHRONIC RHINOSINUSITIS AS A COMORBID DRIVER IN COPD
    (Faculty of Medicine, Ss. Cyril and Methodius University in Skopje, 2025-07-18)
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    Debreshlioska, Angjela
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    Introduction: Chronic rhinosinusitis (CRS) is increasingly recognized as a significant comorbidity in patients with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), particularly under the framework of the “united airways” model, which emphasizes shared inflammatory mechanisms across the upper and lower respiratory tract. Aim: To evaluate inflammatory biomarker profiles among COPD patients with and without CRS, and to assess differences across distinct COPD phenotypes—non-exacerbators (NE), frequent exacerbators (E), and asthma-COPD overlap (ACO). Material and methods: A cross-sectional study was conducted on 36 COPD patients at a university clinic in Skopje, including 21 with CRS and 15 patients without CRS. All participants underwent clinical phenotyping, nasal endoscopy, sinus CT, and serum biomarker analysis (IL-4, IL-5, IL-6, IL-8, CRP, leukocytes). Statistical comparisons were made using Mann–Whitney U and Kruskal–Wallis tests. Results: CRS was predominantly found in patients with the ACO phenotype (71.4%, p = 0.0006). No statistically significant differences were observed in systemic biomarkers (IL‑4, IL‑5, IL‑6, IL‑8, CRP, leukocytes) between COPD patients with and without CRS. IL‑5 and IL‑6 were undetectable. Similarly, inflammatory profiles did not significantly differ among COPD phenotypes. Conclusion: CRS appears disproportionately represented in the ACO phenotype, likely due to shared type‑2 inflammatory pathways. However, conventional systemic biomarkers lack the sensitivity to detect upper airway involvement or differentiate COPD phenotypes. These findings highlight the need for comprehensive airway assessment and more specific biomarkers in future studies to better understand the interplay between CRS and COPD.
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    COPD prevalence and characteristics among sample of working population
    (Frontiers Media SA, 2025-05-27)
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    Brborović, Hana
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    Milošević, Milan
    Introduction: COPD is a global public health problem, causing a very high rates of morbidity, mortality, and work disability in the last decades worldwide. Objective: To determine the prevalence and characteristics COPD in a random sample of workers form the city of Skopje, and its relation to occupational exposures. Methods: A cross-sectional study was conducted including 1,867 workers (959 males and 908 females) from the city of Skopje. Afterwards, the study subjects were divided into exposed (1.287/68.9%) and unexposed (580/31.1%) groups based on their current job exposure to noxious particles and gasses. All study participants completed a questionnaire and underwent pre-and post-bronchodilator spirometry. Results: COPD prevalence was 3.9% among all workers. COPD prevalence in exposed workers was significantly higher compared to unexposed (4.7% vs. 2.4%). Significant difference was found in exposed workers with exposure duration longer than 20 years as compared to those with shorter duration of exposure (6.0 vs. 3.2%). COPD prevalence in workers who smoked was significantly higher than in non-smoking workers in both exposed (6.0% vs. 3.9%, p = 0.037) and unexposed (3.9% vs. 1.8%, p = 0.000) groups. The difference between workers with COPD in terms of use of solid and liquid bio fossil fuels at home and central heating/electricity is not significant (5.0% vs. 3.6%), both in exposed (5.4% vs. 4.3%), as well as non-exposed workers (3.8% vs. 1.9%). Conclusion: Our findings confirmed the role of occupational exposures in COPD prevalence indicating a need of more effective preventive activities in order to reduce the overall disease burden.
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    COPD PREVALENCE AND CHARACTERISTICS AMONG RETIRED WORKERS
    (Faculty of Medicine, Ss. Cyril and Methodius University in Skopje, 2025-04)
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    Atanasovska, Aneta
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    Bislimovska, Dragana
    Introduction:Age and exposure to noxious particles and gases are considered as important risk factors for the development of COPD. Aim of the study:To assess the prevalence of COPD in a sample of retired persons from the Skopje region.Material and methods:We performed a cross-sectional study (prevalence study) in a sample of 392 randomly selected retired persons, 207 males and 185 females, aged 56 to 84 years. Study protocol included completion of a questionnaire and pre-and post-bronchodilator spirometry.Results:The prevalence of COPD in the whole sample was 8.7% (34/392),being non-significantly higher in men (9.1%) than in women (8.1%). The difference in COPD prevalence between smoking and non-smoking retired persons was within the borders of statistical significance (10.7% vs.7.5; P=0.084). The difference in COPD prevalence between retired persons exposed to vapors, gases, dusts, and fumes (VGDF) at their workplace during their active period and retired persons with no such exposure just missed statistical significance (9.5% vs.7.4%; P=0.073). COPD prevalence in the smoking retired persons occupationally exposed to VGDF during their active period was significantly higher than its prevalence in the smoking retired persons occupationally unexposed to VGDF during their active period (12.6% vs.8.2%; P=0.036). Conclusion: Our results confirm the role of age and exposure to noxious particles and gases in the COPD development.