First Steps COPD - Practice

Primary Care Respiratory Society UK (PCRS-UK)

Username: Password:
Remember me on this computer (won't work if cookies are not enabled in browser)

Search this site

Return to PCRS-UK COPD Resources

How ready is your practice?
Supporting Information - Guidelines

Is the practice using a recognised guideline that is readily available to the whole team?

Guidelines can be cumbersome and, at times, can be difficult to access during a consultation. It is therefore important the practice adopts a guideline and also a quick reference guide which can aid decisions. The NICE guideline published in 2004 is the accepted key reference for the UK but may be adapted for local use⁴. In addition to the NICE guideline on COPD there are helpful international guidelines particularly the Global Strategy for the Diagnosis, Management and Prevention of COPD².

There are a variety of tools available to assess disability and quality of life.
One example of a disability tool is the Medical Research Council (MRC) Dyspnoea Score which provides a useful way to classify patient’s breathlessness⁴:

MRC Dyspnoea Score Grade degree of breathlessness related to activities:
Grade 1	Not troubled by breathlessness except on strenuous exercise
Grade 2	Short of breath when hurrying or walking up a slight hill
Grade 3	Walks slower than contemporaries on a level because of breathlessness, or has to stop for breath when walking at own pace
Grade 4	Stops for breath after walking about 100m or after a few minutes on the level
Grade 5	Too breathless to leave the house or breathless when dressing or undressing

Other useful Primary Care Respiratory Society UK information and resources:

Refererences:
2. National Institutes of Health NHLBI. Global Strategy for the Diagnosis, Management and Prevention of COPD, Global Initiative for Chronic Obstructive Lung Disease (GOLD) 2008. Available from URL:http://goldcopd.com
4. National Institute of Health and Clinical Excellence (NICE). National clinical guideline: Management of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease in adults in primary and secondary care. Thorax 2004:59 (suppl.1) S1-232. Available www.nice.org.uk (Last accessed 24/8/2009)

This series of resources has been produced as a service to primary care by the Primary Care Respiratory Society UK (PCRS-UK) and has been supported by an educational grant from Allen & Hanburys, AstraZeneca UK Ltd and Boehringer Ingelheim Ltd/Pfizer Ltd. The views expressed in the materials are not necessarily those of either the sponsors or the Primary Care Respiratory Society UK (PCRS-UK). © PCRS-UK

\| Contact us \| Disclaimer \| PCRJ \| IMPRESS \| Opinion Sheets \| Quick Retrieval Tool \| Join \| Sitemap \|
PCRS-UK: formerly the General Practice Airways Group (GPIAG) Page updated on 25 October 2011 19:01 Website developed by Danzig Designs • Hosted by srchild.com If you experience any problems with the website, kindly email info@danzigdesigns.com

PCRS-UK: formerly the General Practice Airways Group (GPIAG)