Risk factors of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease in men and women in Sanandaj, Iran

ACKGROUND: Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) is the fourth leading cause of death in the world. While smoking has been identified as the main cause of COPD in many studies, other causes may include environmental pollution and genetic vulnerability in both genders. Considering lifestyle of rural women, and the old structure of Sanandaj (Kurdistan Province, Iran) which is different with other parts of the country, this study compared the risk factors for COPD in men and women. METHODS: In a descriptive, analytic study 400 subjects of both genders (200 female and 200 male) were evaluated. The files of patients with COPD admitted to Besat Hospital (Sanandaj, Iran) during 2006-11 were randomly selected using a systematic sampling method. The sampling continued until a total of 200 patient files were collected in each group. Eventually, data was analyzed with SPSS. RESULTS: Smoking was the major risk factor (56.5%) for COPD in both men and women (n = 226). While only 32.5% of women (n = 65) had a history of smoking, the rate was as high as 80.5% in men (n = 161). Most women (60.5%) were more exposed to fossil fuel smoke than men. Fisher's exact test results showed a significant difference in the risk factors (including Smoking and tobacco use, Exposure to fossil fuel smoke and air pollution) and the type of jobs between the two genders. CONCLUSION: Based on the results of our study, it is better to obtain an accurate history of exposure to smoke of wood or biomass and a history of residing in rural areas as the main risk factors for developing COPD in patients who have no history of high-risk occupations or other risk factors of the disease (e.g. smoking).