Phenotype of COPD: “Frequent exacerbator” and Biomarkers Use in Clinical Practice Download PDF

An actual burden on healthcare systems across the world, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) is a prevalent, complicated, diverse disorder that causes rising morbidity, mortality, and healthcare expenses. The radiological, physiological, and cellular phenotypes of COPD, a nosologically complicated illness, are known to be extremely diverse. Precision medicine is a new approach that compares individuals with identical diagnoses but varied prognoses and outcomes by looking at their genetic, biomarker, phenotypic, and psychological features. Understanding the disease's heterogeneity is crucial to successfully phenotyping COPD. We attempted to discuss the development of the classification of COPD, the phenotyping of the illness, the definitions of exacerbations, risk factors, and COPD exacerbations and their impact in this narrative review. Research and therapy efforts should focus on the "high exacerbator phenotype" since it is more likely to have elevated hospital admissions, comorbidities, and death. The frequent exacerbator phenotype of COPD currently lacks confirmed biomarkers that may be used to identify it. While new biomarkers will be discovered and validated in large study COPD populations, adherence to best practice guidelines, diagnosis of clinical “frequent exacerbator phenotype“, identification of traditional exacerbator ’ risk factors, colonization, and proper management of comorbidities could be the best management of this heterogenous and complex disease.