In this thesis, composed of two separate articles, we studied the frequency of COPD exacerbations and assessed the effectiveness of inhaled corticosteroids in preventing a first exacerbation of COPD. We used an inception cohort of COPD patients, formed from the computerised databases of Saskatchewan. / The rate of COPD exacerbations was 11.5 per 100 person-years. It increased with age and was 50% higher in men than women. Use of inhaled corticosteroids in the year prior to the index date and current use were associated with a small increase in the risk of a first exacerbation (adjusted RR = 1.27, 95% CI: 1.08--1.48 and 1.51, 95% CI: 1.22--2.87, respectively). The risk increased with increasing daily dose (adjusted RR per 1000 mug = 1.83, 95% CI: 1.47--2.28). / We did not find that the use of inhaled corticosteroids reduces the risk of a first exacerbation in patients with COPD.
| Identifer | oai:union.ndltd.org:LACETR/oai:collectionscanada.gc.ca:QMM.79058 |
| Date | January 2003 |
| Creators | Nunes de Melo, Magda |
| Contributors | Suissa, S. (advisor) |
| Publisher | McGill University |
| Source Sets | Library and Archives Canada ETDs Repository / Centre d'archives des thèses électroniques de Bibliothèque et Archives Canada |
| Language | English |
| Detected Language | English |
| Type | Electronic Thesis or Dissertation |
| Format | application/pdf |
| Coverage | Master of Science (Department of Epidemiology and Biostatistics.) |
| Rights | All items in eScholarship@McGill are protected by copyright with all rights reserved unless otherwise indicated. |
| Relation | alephsysno: 001975034, proquestno: AAIMQ88273, Theses scanned by UMI/ProQuest. |
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