COPD patients derive clinical benefit from β-blockers

A large observational study from Denmark showed that chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) patients treated with β-blockers did not only have fewer hospitalisations but also a lower total mortality compared with COPD patients treated with other antihypertensive drugs [1].

The study presented by Dr Anne Nielsen (Zealand University Hospital, Denmark) compared 301,542 COPD patients who were new users of β-blockers with more than a million new users of any other antihypertensive drugs [2]. The participants were aged 30-90 years and had no history of COPD hospitalisations. From 1995-2015, participants were followed in the Danish National Patient Registry for hospital admissions for COPD, all-cause mortality, and COPD associated death.

Overall, people treated continuously with β-blockers for more than 6 months had a 20% lower relative risk for COPD hospitalisation in the follow-up period compared with patients treated with other antihypertensives. Subgroup analyses revealed that the risk of COPD hospitalisation was reduced in the β-blockers groups among patients with ischaemic heart disease (HR 0.72; 95% CI 0.69-0.75), cardiac arrhythmias (HR 0.76; 95% CI 0.72-0.80), asthma (HR 0.69; 95% CI 0.61-0.79), hypertension (HR 0.91; 95% CI 0.86-0.96), and pulmonary embolism and cor pulmonale (HR 0.72; 95% CI 0.59-0.87).

The effect was even more pronounced in all-cause mortality: patients treated with β-blockers had a 47% lower relative risk of death compared with patients treated with other antihypertensive drugs (see Figure).

Figure: Patients treated with a β-blocker had a significant lower risk of all-cause mortality [1]

1. 
   
   1. Nielsen AO, et al. PA2459, ERS 2019, 29 Sept-2 Oct, Madrid, Spain.
   2. Nielsen AO, et al. EClinMed 2019;7:21-26.

Posted on 28 November, 201928 March, 2024