Screening for Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease (COPD) in an Urban HIV Clinic: A Pilot Study

Increased smoking and a detrimental response to tobacco smoke in the lungs of HIV/AIDS patients result in an increased risk for COPD. We aimed to determine the predictive value of a COPD screening strategy validated in the general population and to identify HIV-related factors associated with decreased lung function. Subjects at least 35 years of age at an HIV clinic in New York City completed a COPD screening questionnaire and peak flow measurement. Those with abnormal results and a random one-third of normal screens had spirometry. 235 individuals were included and 89 completed spirometry. Eleven (12%) had undiagnosed airway obstruction and 5 had COPD. A combination of a positive questionnaire and abnormal peak flow yielded a sensitivity of 20% (specificity 93%) for detection of COPD. Peak flow alone had a sensitivity of 80% (specificity 80%). Abnormal peak flow was associated with an AIDS diagnosis (p=0.04), lower nadir (p=0.001), and current CD4 counts (p=0.001). Nadir CD4 remained associated in multivariate analysis (p=0.05). Decreased FEV1 (<80% predicted) was associated with lower CD4 count nadir (p=0.04) and detectable current HIV viral load (p=0.01) in multivariate analysis. Questionnaire and peak flow together had low sensitivity, but abnormal peak flow shows potential as a screening tool for COPD in HIV/AIDS. These data suggest that lung function may be influenced by HIV-related factors.