--- title: "Risk of severe cardiovascular events and incidence rate of cardiopulmonary events among patients with COPD in China: a retrospective cohort study" id: "bmj-open-5-risk-of-severe-cardiovascular-events-and-incidence-rate-of-cardiopulmonary-events-among-patients-with-copd-in-china-a-retrospective-cohort-study" canonical_url: "https://medichelpline.com/clinical-feed/bmj-open-5-risk-of-severe-cardiovascular-events-and-incidence-rate-of-cardiopulmonary-events-among-patients-with-copd-in-china-a-retrospective-cohort-study" content_type: "clinical_feed_article" specialty: "Research Highlights" source_name: "BMJ Open" source_url: "http://bmjopen.bmj.com/cgi/content/short/16/4/e109712?rss=1" published_at: "2026-04-20T13:20:59.000Z" evidence_level: "Journal Feed" license: "CC-BY-NC-4.0 / Informational Use" --- # Risk of severe cardiovascular events and incidence rate of cardiopulmonary events among patients with COPD in China: a retrospective cohort study ## Provenance & Clinical Metadata - **Canonical URL:** https://medichelpline.com/clinical-feed/bmj-open-5-risk-of-severe-cardiovascular-events-and-incidence-rate-of-cardiopulmonary-events-among-patients-with-copd-in-china-a-retrospective-cohort-study - **Specialty:** [Research Highlights](https://medichelpline.com/clinical-feed/research-highlights.md) - **Primary Source:** BMJ Open - **Source URL:** [Original Journal Publication](http://bmjopen.bmj.com/cgi/content/short/16/4/e109712?rss=1) - **Published At:** 2026-04-20T13:20:59.000Z - **Evidence Rating:** Journal Feed ## Executive GIST (TL;DR) Objectives To examine the risk of severe cardiovascular (CV) events in patients with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) across different time periods following COPD exacerbations and the incidence rate of cardiopulmonary events in a real-world setting in China. Design Retrospective cohort study. Setting Regional electronic health records database from Yinzhou District of Ningbo City, China. Participants A total of 14 713 patients aged ≥40 years with a first COPD diagnosis between 1 January 2014 and 1 March 2022. Primary and secondary outcome measures The risk of severe CV events (ie, hospitalisation and a primary or secondary discharge code for acute coronary syndrome, heart failure decompensation, cerebral ischaemia, arrhythmia and CV-related death) during different exposed time periods following a COPD exacerbation, the incidence rate of overall cardiopulmonary events (ie, severe exacerbation of COPD, all-cause mortality, inpatient CV events, inpatient ischaemic stroke and inpatient tachyarrhythmia/atrial fibrillation) and the incidence rate stratified by COPD exacerbation history. Results We included a total of 14 713 patients. During a median (IQR) follow-up of 2.8 (4.0) years, 20.1% experienced severe CV events. Compared with the unexposed period, the risk of severe CV events was the highest in the first 10 days following a COPD exacerbation (adjusted HR 10.00, 95% CI 8.16 to 12.25). The risk of severe CV events decreased over time but remained significantly elevated up to 90 days post exacerbation. We found that 32.7% of COPD patients experienced cardiopulmonary events, with a crude incidence rate of 9.38 (95% CI 9.09 to 9.69) per 100 person-years. Conclusion This study is the largest retrospective cohort study investigating CV and cardiopulmonary events among patients with COPD in China. Our findings highlight an elevated risk of CV events closer to the time of COPD exacerbations and show that nearly one-third of COPD patients experience cardiopulmonary events. ## Clinical Analysis & Structured Key Points Objectives To examine the risk of severe cardiovascular (CV) events in patients with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) across different time periods following COPD exacerbations and the incidence rate of cardiopulmonary events in a real-world setting in China. Design Retrospective cohort study. Setting Regional electronic health records database from Yinzhou District of Ningbo City, China. Participants A total of 14 713 patients aged ≥40 years with a first COPD diagnosis between 1 January 2014 and 1 March 2022. Primary and secondary outcome measures The risk of severe CV events (ie, hospitalisation and a primary or secondary discharge code for acute coronary syndrome, heart failure decompensation, cerebral ischaemia, arrhythmia and CV-related death) during different exposed time periods following a COPD exacerbation, the incidence rate of overall cardiopulmonary events (ie, severe exacerbation of COPD, all-cause mortality, inpatient CV events, inpatient ischaemic stroke and inpatient tachyarrhythmia/atrial fibrillation) and the incidence rate stratified by COPD exacerbation history. Results We included a total of 14 713 patients. During a median (IQR) follow-up of 2.8 (4.0) years, 20.1% experienced severe CV events. Compared with the unexposed period, the risk of severe CV events was the highest in the first 10 days following a COPD exacerbation (adjusted HR 10.00, 95% CI 8.16 to 12.25). The risk of severe CV events decreased over time but remained significantly elevated up to 90 days post exacerbation. We found that 32.7% of COPD patients experienced cardiopulmonary events, with a crude incidence rate of 9.38 (95% CI 9.09 to 9.69) per 100 person-years. Conclusion This study is the largest retrospective cohort study investigating CV and cardiopulmonary events among patients with COPD in China. Our findings highlight an elevated risk of CV events closer to the time of COPD exacerbations and show that nearly one-third of COPD patients experience cardiopulmonary events. ## Related Clinical Research - [Intracoronary prourokinase for slow‑flow/no‑reflow during PCI in ACS: randomized double‑blind tria](https://medichelpline.com/clinical-feed/bmj-open-5-efficacy-and-safety-of-intracoronary-injection-of-recombinant-human.md) - [Semaglutide and Primary Prevention of MACCE in Obese Adults with T2DM and Rheumatoid Arthritis](https://medichelpline.com/clinical-feed/pubmed-42334436.md) (DOI: 10.1093/ehjcvp/pvag044) - [Neural-Immune-Cardiovascular Axis: Mechanisms and Therapeutic Targets in Cardiovascular Disease](https://medichelpline.com/clinical-feed/frontiers-in-immunology-13-neural-immune-cardiovascular-axis-from-mechanistic-crosstalk-to-therapeutic.md) - [Post-stroke acute heart failure in patients with large vessel occlusion undergoing endovascular treatment: A pooled analysis of individual patient data from multicenter studies with mediation analysis](https://medichelpline.com/clinical-feed/plos-medicine-1-post-stroke-acute-heart-failure-in-patients-with-large-vessel-occlusion.md) - [Cardiovascular and renal outcomes of combined SGLT2 inhibitors and GLP-1 receptor agonists versus monotherapy in patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus: a network meta-analysis [Research]](https://medichelpline.com/clinical-feed/cmaj-0-cardiovascular-and-renal-outcomes-of-combined-sglt2-inhibitors-and-glp-1.md) ## Navigation - [← Back to Research Highlights Feed](https://medichelpline.com/clinical-feed/research-highlights.md) - [← All Clinical Specialties](https://medichelpline.com/clinical-feed.md) ## Medical & Regulatory Disclaimer > [!CAUTION] > MedicHelpline content is structured for research, educational, and professional discovery purposes. 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