Related Experiment Video
Updated: Jun 15, 2025
Author Spotlight: Exploring Breathing Techniques and Digital Solutions for Enhancing Running Performance
Published on: September 27, 2024
The health and economic burden of breathlessness, Australia, 2019: a national survey
Anthony P Sunjaya1,2, Leanne M Poulos3, Gian Luca Di Tanna1,4
1The George Institute for Global Health, Sydney, NSW.
Objective:
To examine the impact of breathlessness on quality of life, health care use, productivity loss, and economic costs in Australia.
Study Design:
National internet-based survey of Australian adults drawn from a web-based survey panel (National Breathlessness Survey).
Participants, Setting:
Australian adults (18 years or older), nationally representative by age group, gender, state of residence, and postcode-based socio-economic status (Index of Relative Socioeconomic Disadvantage quintile), 13-30 October 2019.
Main Outcome Measures:
Quality of life assessed with the EQ-5D 5-level version (EQ-5D-5L) and visual analogue scale (EQ-VAS), health care use, productivity loss, and societal cost, each by severity of breathlessness (modified Medical Research Council [mMRC] dyspnoea scale; mMRC grade 1: mild breathlessness; mMRC grades 2-4: clinically important breathlessness).
Results:
Of 10 072 adults who completed the survey, mild breathlessness was reported by 3044 respondents (30.2%), and clinically important breathlessness by 961 (9.5%). The mean EQ-VAS score was 74.8 points (95% confidence interval [CI], 74.3-75.3 points) and the mean EQ-5D-5L score 0.846 (95% CI, 0.841-0.850) for respondents with mMRC grade 0 breathlessness; for each measure, the mean value declined with increasing severity of breathlessness (trends: each P < 0.001). Respondents with clinically important breathlessness were more likely than those with mild breathlessness to report non-urgent general practitioner visits, urgent general practitioner visits, and specialist visits (exception: mMRC scores of 4) during the preceding year. Among the 2839 respondents of working age, the likelihood of being employed declined with increasing breathlessness severity (mMRC grades 4 v 1: adjusted odds ratio, 0.34; 95% CI, 0.22-0.53). Adjusted mean annual societal cost per person was $1413 (95% CI, $1326-1501) for respondents with mMRC grade 1 breathlessness, $2065 (95% CI, $1766-2365) at mMRC grade 2, $1795 (95% CI, $1371-2218) at mMRC grade 3, and $2075 (95% CI, $1389-2762) at mMRC grade 4.
Conclusion:
Breathlessness imposes major burdens on individuals, the health care system, and the economy.
More Related Videos
04:03Author Spotlight: Evaluating the Therapeutic Efficacy of Moving Cupping Along Meridians for Acute Exacerbation of COPD
Published on: September 27, 2024
08:34Investigation into Deep Breathing through Measurement of Ventilatory Parameters and Observation of Breathing Patterns
Published on: September 16, 2019
Related Concept Videos
01:23Assessment of Respiration
Subjective Assessment: Nurses interview the patient to gather information directly during the subjective assessment. It includes questions about the individual's medical history, medications, and symptoms, focusing on past respiratory conditions like...
01:27Physical Assessment of the Respiratory Tract II: Inspection
Chest Configuration
The chest configuration...
01:27Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease-IV: Assessement and Diagnostic Studies
Medical History
01:28Physical Assessment of the Respiratory Tract I: Health History
Subjective Data
Subjective data provides vital information about the patient's health history and symptoms. This data is typically collected through interviews in which patients describe their experiences, symptoms, and concerns.
Health history and...
01:28Physical Assessment of the Respiratory Tract IV: Auscultation
Breath Sounds
Breath sounds are categorized into vesicular, bronchovesicular, and bronchial.
01:20Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease-I: Introduction