The influence of gender differences on the illness perception and women's point of view on COPD

Objectives: Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) is an irreversible disease and has influence on patients' quality of life. The aim is to investigate the influence of gender on the illness perception in COPD patients.

Materials and methods: This prospective study enrolled 151 COPD patients. For the evaluation of illness perception, we used Brief Illness Perception Questionnaire (BIPQ).

Results: Average FEV1 values were significantly different (p = 0.007) in favor of woman compared to men. There was a higher proportion of GOLD stage 3 and less stage 4 in women. We found a significant difference in total BIPQ scores between female and male patients (p = 0.008). Women gave a significantly higher score on question 6 and 8 (p = 0.003). We found a significant difference in total BIPQ scores between female and male patients. Women perceive COPD as a significantly more threatening disease and accept chronic course and long-term treatment.

Conclusion: COPD is no longer a disease that predominantly affects men. BIPQ is a convenient tool for fast assessment of illness perception for COPD. Patients' perceptions of COPD is in correlation with gender and GOLD stadium. The results of this study have potential benefits in terms of health promotion and improvement of the quality of life and outcome (Fig. 4, Ref. 21).