ORIGINAL RESEARCH article
Front. Med.
Sec. Pulmonary Medicine
Volume 12 - 2025 | doi: 10.3389/fmed.2025.1620703
Knowledge, attitudes, and practices of COPD patients regarding acute exacerbations of COPD
Provisionally accepted
- 1Pharmacy Department, Yuexi County Hospital, Anqing, Anhui Province, China
- 2Department of Respiratory Medicine, Yuexi County Hospital, yuexi, China
- 3Department of Pharmacy, The First Affiliated Hospital of University of Science and Technology of China Anhui Provincial Hospital, Hefei, Anhui Province, China
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Objective: This study aims to assess the knowledge, attitudes, and practices (KAP) of patients with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) concerning AECOPD. Methods: A cross-sectional survey was conducted at Yuexi County Hospital in Anhui Province, China, between April and December 2024. Data were collected using a structured questionnaire comprising demographic characteristics and KAP assessments. Adequate knowledge, positive attitudes, and proactive practices were defined as achieving at least 60% of the maximum possible score in each domain. Results: A total of 445 valid questionnaires were analyzed. Among the respondents, 332 (74.61%) were male, and 271 (60.90%) had been diagnosed with COPD for over a decade. The mean scores for knowledge, attitude, and practice were 7.25±4.43 (range: 0–26), 36.91±4.56 (range: 11–55), and 30.59±3.76 (range: 10–50), respectively. Correlation analysis showed positive correlation between knowledge and attitude (r=0.095, P=0.045), knowledge and practice (r=0.376, P<0.001), and attitude and practice (r=0.324, P<0.001). SEM analysis demonstrated that knowledge directly influenced both attitude (β=0.226, P=0.036) and practice (β=0.660, P=0.008), while attitude also had a direct effect on practice (β=0.299, P=0.004). Additionally, knowledge exerted an indirect effect on practice through attitude (β=0.067, P=0.020). Conclusion: Despite generally positive attitudes and proactive practices, COPD patients exhibited insufficient knowledge about AECOPD, which may limit their ability to effectively manage exacerbations. Targeted education may enhance self-care and reduce exacerbation risk.
Keywords: Health Literacy, Patient Education, structural equation modeling (SEM), self-management, Cross-sectional study
Received: 30 May 2025; Accepted: 11 Aug 2025.
Copyright: © 2025 Xia, Zhang and Su. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY). The use, distribution or reproduction in other forums is permitted, provided the original author(s) or licensor are credited and that the original publication in this journal is cited, in accordance with accepted academic practice. No use, distribution or reproduction is permitted which does not comply with these terms.
* Correspondence:
Yahua Zhang, Department of Respiratory Medicine, Yuexi County Hospital, yuexi, China
Dan Su, Department of Pharmacy, The First Affiliated Hospital of University of Science and Technology of China Anhui Provincial Hospital, Hefei, 230001, Anhui Province, China
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