Overview
- India’s COPD burden has soared to the country’s No. 2 killer, with reports citing up to about 55 million cases and a growing share among non-smokers.
- Doctors link rising disease to outdoor pollution, biomass smoke, and occupational exposures, with heightened risks for women, children, and post-COVID patients.
- Winter conditions and severe smog are triggering more exacerbations and hospital visits, as seen in Delhi and other cities with persistently poor air quality.
- FIRS underscored that up to roughly 70% of COPD cases remain undiagnosed worldwide and cited GOLD guidance calling for active case finding with spirometry for at-risk or symptomatic people.
- India’s health minister reaffirmed early screening through NP-NCD and Ayushman Arogya Mandirs, while hospitals and states rolled out World COPD Day clinics and discounted PFTs; experts stress smoking cessation, inhaled therapies, rehabilitation, and vaccinations since damage is not fully reversible.