Chronic bronchitis: a retrospective analysis (own data)
Abstract
The global prevalence of chronic bronchitis (CB) ranges from 3.4% to 22%, while it ranges from 10% to 20% in the Russian Federation. These variations reflect differences in definitions and the association with the chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) phenotype. Among patients with COPD, the frequency of CB reaches 14 – 74% and is associated with a more severe disease course, including accelerated lung function decline, frequent exacerbations, reduced quality of life and increased mortality. CB also occurs in individuals without airway obstruction and increases the risk of developing COPD. Overdiagnosis represents a significant challenge: up to 88.4% of patients diagnosed with CB do not meet the diagnostic criteria, whereas the true prevalence of COPD remains underestimated. Aim. This study aims to assess, through a retrospective analysis of medical records, the extent to which the diagnosis of chronic bronchitis aligns with standard criteria in realworld clinical practice, and to analyze potential reasons for discrepancies. Methods. We conducted a retrospective cohort study of 185 medical records with a final diagnosis of chronic bronchitis from 2018 to 2025, extracting anamnestic, clinical, laboratory and instrumental data. We divided the patients into four groups: CB, chronic lung diseases, acute respiratory diseases, and other diseases. We performed statistical analysis using StatTech software. Results. The retrospective analysis confirmed the diagnosis of CB in 9 out of 185 patients (4.9%; 95% CI: 2.2 – 9.0). In 177 patients (95.1%), we revised the initial diagnosis, indicating low diagnostic accuracy for CB in clinical practice. Conclusion. The key to improving diagnostic accuracy lies not so much in applying hightechnology methods, but rather in meticulously collecting the medical history and evaluating the duration of symptoms. The diagnosis of CB should remain a diagnosis of exclusion, requiring a systematic process of ruling out more common causes of chronic cough.