What have we learned from the German COPD cohort COSYCONET and where do we go from here?

COSYCONET 1 is the only German COPD cohort which is large enough to be internationally comparable. The recruitment, which started in 2010 and ended in December 2013, comprised 2741 patients with the diagnosis of COPD who were subsequently investigated in regular follow-up visits. All visits included a comprehensive functional and clinical characterisation. On the basis of this detailed data set, it was possible to address a large number of clinical questions. These questions ranged from the prescription of medication, the detailed analysis of comorbidities, in particular cardiovascular disease, and biomarker assessment to radiological and health-economic aspects. Currently, more than 60 publications of COSYCONET data are internationally available. The present overview provides a description of all the results that were obtained, focussing on the relationship between different clinical and functional aspects as well as their potential practical consequences. In addition, information on the follow-up study COSYCONET 2 is given.

Automated summary

COSYCONET 1 is the only large German COPD cohort that can be compared internationally. From 2010 to December 2013, a total of 2741 patients diagnosed with COPD were recruited and subsequently followed up. Various clinical questions were addressed using this comprehensive dataset, covering medication prescription, comorbidity analysis, biomarker assessment, radiological aspects, and health economic aspects. More than 60 publications of COSYCONET data are currently available internationally. This overview summarizes the obtained results, focusing on the relationships between different clinical and functional aspects and their potential practical consequences. Additionally, information on the follow-up study COSYCONET 2 is provided.