COPD Emergency Department Data

The numbers and rates of COPD emergency department visits in Iowa by year, age group and gender.

If a COPD measure is going up or down over time.

If a segment of a population is at higher risk for a visit to the emergency department due to COPD.

To inform the public about COPD emergency department visits.

For program planning and evaluation by state and local partners.

What causes COPD, or what leads to COPD emergency department visits.

The total burden of COPD in a population

The number of people who visited the emergency department due to COPD. Because personal identifiers are removed from the hospital discharge data before analysis, individuals who have multiple hospitalizations or emergency department visits cannot be identified.

Hospitalization and emergency department data are collected by the Iowa Hospital Association on behalf of HHS in accordance with Iowa Code section 135.166.

Bridged-race population estimates from the National Center for Health Statistics and US Census. Data from 2000 to 2009 are based on intercensal population estimates and 2010-most current year are based on the postcensal population estimates.

The Iowa Public Health Tracking portal displays Emergency Department visit data from the year 2003 through the most recent year of data available.

Emergency Department visits are defined as Iowa residents who are treated and released or subsequently admitted to a facility in Iowa.

COPD emergency department visits have COPD as the first-listed diagnosis.

COPD is defined as the International Classification of Disease 9th Revision, Clinical Modification (ICD-9-CM) codes that begin with 490, 491, 492 or 496. Also includes primary diagnosis of 493.2 when a code that begins with 490, 491, 492 or 496 is present in any of the secondary diagnosis fields.

COPD is defined as the International Classification of Disease 10th Revision, Clinical Modification (ICD-10-CM) codes that begin with J40 - J44.

Because COPD is a disease of adults, only ages 25 and older are included in summary rates for the population.

Multiple emergency department visits by the same patient cannot be identified, and are not excluded.

It cannot tell us what causes COPD, or what leads to seeking medical care for COPD.

These data are not appropriate for estimating the total burden of COPD.

Iowa residents discharged from hospitals in surrounding states are not included, so emergency department visit rates for counties in which residents are likely to receive care in a surrounding state may be underestimated. Rates for counties in which residents are likely to visit hospitals that do not submit data to the Iowa Hospital Association (e.g., Veteran's Administration, Indian Health Services hospitals, and institutionalized populations) may also be artificially low.