PREVALENCE OF CHRONIC OBSTRUCTIVE PULMONARY DISEASE RISK FACTORS AMONG THE ADULT POPULATION IN ZHAMBYL REGION IN 2021: A CROSS-SECTIONAL STUDY

Abstract

Introduction. Data from the World Health Organization show that chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) has become an important contributor to the global burden of non-communicable diseases [5]. COPD affects 12% of the global population or 300 million people and it is the 12th most prevalent cause of years of life lost globally and the fourth leading cause of death [30]. An estimated 1.4 million individuals in Kazakhstan may be affected by COPD. Tobacco smoking, occupational and environmental exposures including workplace dusts and chemicals, and smoke from home cooking and heating fuels are the main risk factors for COPD [6, 10, 23]. Aim. To study the prevalence of risk factors and symptoms of COPD among the adult population of Zhambyl region. Materials and Methods. The descriptive cross-sectional study was conducted in the Zhambyl Region, the southern of the Kazakhstan. The study included people aged 18-69 years who were willing to give informed consent. The type of data distribution was tested using the Kolmogorov‒Smirnov test. Because the data distribution was normal, descriptive statistics were generated by computing the mean and the standard deviation (SD). Qualitative data are presented in absolute numbers and percentages. Pearson's chi-square (χ2) test was used to evaluate differences in frequencies. The critical value was considered significant at p < 0.05. Results. The level of current tobacco use among survey participants was 10.1%. The proportion of male smokers was 38.2%, female smokers 3.2%, and those using non-smoking tobacco products 3.4%. A total of 89.7% of men and 47.8% of women smoked daily. Of the respondents, 20% reported more frequent coughs and 27.5% more frequent colds. In addition, 20% of respondents had a history of chronic bronchitis and 14% had a history of pneumonia. Conclusion. We found a significant prevalence of respiratory symptoms for COPD such as coughing, shortness of breath, and chronic bronchitis. Tobacco smoking emerged as the most important risk factor, with a significant number of respondents reporting current smoking habits and exposure to passive smoking. Reducing the prevalence of COPD, a silent disease that affects public health, should be a national priority.