Assessing Symptom Burden

Evaluating symptoms is a central part of the chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) assessment system as suggested by the Global Initiative for Chronic Obstructive Lung Disease (GOLD). Considering the pros and cons of all currently available tests, GOLD suggests using primarily the modified Medical Research Council dyspnea scale or the COPD Assessment Test. Based on the test results, patients are categorized as having a low or high level of symptoms. This level then becomes one of the 2 dimensions of the ABCD grading system, which was designed to match the best initial treatment option to the individual patient's needs.