No previous study has investigated the adherence rate of North-African pulmonologists to the 2017-GOLD PTGs.
To investigate the adherence rate of Tunisian pulmonologists to the 2017-GOLD PTGs and to identify the barriers to their adherence.
This was a cohort study involving clinically stable COPD patients who presented to a pulmonology outpatient consultation. The patients were classified as having been appropriately and inappropriately (over- or undertreatment) treated for the GOLD group. Logistic regression was performed to determine the adherence barriers to the 2017-GOLD PTGs.
A total of 296 patients were included (88.1% males, mean age: 68 ± 10 years; GOLD A (7.1%), B (36.1%), C (4.1%), and D (52.7%)). The pulmonologists' adherence rate to the 2017-GOLD PTGs was 29.7%. There was a significant statistical difference between the adherence rates among the four GOLD groups (A: 19.0%, B: 20.6%, C: 8.3%, and D: 39.1%; p = 0.001). Differences were statistically significant between the GOLD group D and groups B ( p = 0.001). Differences were statistically significant between the GOLD group D and groups B ( p = 0.001). Differences were statistically significant between the GOLD group D and groups B (