Women Have Higher Risk for COPD Than Men, Regardless of Smoking History
FRIDAY, May 9, 2025 -- Among adults aged 40 years and older, women have an increased risk for chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), according to a study published online May 8 in BMJ Open Respiratory Research.
Alexander W. Steinberg, M.D., from the University of Washington in Seattle, and colleagues examined associations of gender and cigarette smoking with COPD in a national dataset using cross-sectional data for adults aged 40 years and older from the 2020 National Health Interview Survey.
The researchers found that women had a higher prevalence of COPD than men (7.8 versus 6.5 percent), despite lower exposure to cigarette smoke. Women were less likely to have ever smoked, and among smokers, women had a lower average pack-year history than men. Female gender was associated with a higher risk for COPD in multivariable regressions (adjusted risk ratio, 1.47); the relative risk was similar for those with and without a history of smoking. No significant interaction was seen between gender and smoking status or gender and pack-year exposure in relation to the prevalence of COPD.
"Our findings refine prior estimates of COPD among those without a smoking history and re-emphasize the high burden of COPD in women, underscoring the need for thoughtful efforts to prevent, diagnose, and treat their disease," the authors write. "Additionally, our research raises uncertainty about the common assumption that increased vulnerability to cigarette smoke is driving the gender divide in COPD."
Disclaimer: Statistical data in medical articles provide general trends and do not pertain to individuals. Individual factors can vary greatly. Always seek personalized medical advice for individual healthcare decisions.
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