Prevalence of airflow obstruction and reduced forced vital capacity in an Aboriginal Australian population: The cross-sectional BOLD study

Background and objective Mortality and hospital separation data suggest a higher burden of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) in indigenous than non‐indigenous subpopulations of high‐income countries. This study sought to accurately measure the true prevalence of post‐bronchodilator airflow obstruction and forced vital capacity reduction in representative samples of Indigenous and non‐Indigenous Australians. Methods This study applies cross‐sectional population‐based survey of Aboriginal and non‐Indigenous residents of the Kimberley region of Western Australia aged 40 years or older, following the international Burden Of Lung Disease (BOLD) protocol. Quality‐controlled spirometry was conducted before and after bronchodilator. COPD was defined as Global initiative for chronic Obstructive Lung Disease (GOLD) Stage 2 and above (post‐bronchodilator forced expiratory volume in 1 s/forced vital capacity (FEV1/FVC) ratio