The 2005 Canadian Community Health Survey revealed that over 700,000 adult Canadians aged 35 or older have COPD, but this number is largely considered to be an underestimate. COPD is more common in the older population, and is generally more common in women than men in all age groups except those 75 years of age or older. In 2004, COPD was the fourth leading cause of death in Canadian men and women, with 5366 and 4503 deaths across Canada. Many people are diagnosed when their COPD is severe because they don’t recognize the symptoms.

In a 2005 report, the Canadian Lung Association and Canadian Thoracic Society provided both a national and provincial overview of COPD in Canada. The findings strongly suggest the need for better awareness and management strategies nationwide, especially for recognizing and identifying COPD before it becomes severe. If COPD is diagnosed early, before it becomes severe COPD, and treatment is started people live longer and have a better quality of life.
Some of the findings included:

-Less than of half (45%) of Canadians had heard of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, while less then 17% had heard of the term “COPD”
-While access to spirometry testing is high, many physicians do not use it
-Most people already already have severe COPD when they are diagnosed
-Access to rehabilitation programs for people with COPD is limited
-Management strategies for COPD in many provinces needs to be updated and improved.