Subpopulations and Intermediate Outcome Measures in COPD Study

SPIROMICS I and SPIROMICS II are observational studies of Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease (COPD). SPIROMICS I had two main aims: (1) To find groups of patients with COPD who share certain characteristics; (2) To find new ways of measuring whether or not COPD is getting worse and so provide new ways of testing whether a new treatment is working. SPIROMICS II has three primary aims. Aim 1 is to define the natural history of "Smokers with symptoms despite preserved spirometry" and characterize the airway mucus abnormalities underlying this condition. Aim 2 is to determine the radiographic precursor lesion(s) for emphysema, and identify the molecular phenotypes underlying airway disease and emphysema. Aim 3 is to advance understanding of the biology of COPD exacerbations through analysis of predisposing baseline phenotypes, exacerbation triggers and host inflammatory response.