Summary for Clinicians: Clinical Practice Guideline on Pharmacologic Management of Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease

Evidence-based guidelines for the pharmacological management of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) were updated in 2020 by a multidisciplinary panel of experts. A comprehensive systematic review of the literature was performed to address the key clinical questions and critical patient-centered outcomes agreed on by the panel. The guideline has different implications for patients, clinicians, and policymakers. Clinicians should always consider unique individual clinical circumstances when applying these guideline recommendations to the care plan of patients with COPD. The panel identified 24 randomized controlled trials including 45,441 participants with COPD and analyzed five critical outcomes, including hospital admissions, dyspnea, exacerbations, health-related quality of life (HRQOL), and treatment-related adverse events.