The Help You Deserve: Women and Lung Disease
Why does the University of Michigan Health System have a women's respiratory clinic?
Statistics provide some clues why women's respiratory health deserves extra attention.
- Women have a higher rate of asthma than men.
- In North America, women outnumber men in Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease (COPD) in all but the oldest age categories.
- Beginning in 2000, women exceeded men in the number of deaths attributable to COPD.
Even with those unbalanced statistics, studies have shown that women with lung disease are less likely to receive appropriate medical tests such as pulmonary function testing. Women with COPD are also more likely than men to be misdiagnosed as having asthma, and women are less likely than men to receive subspecialty referrals, preventing them from receiving care from a specialist who thoroughly understands their particular disease.
The U-M Women's Respiratory Clinic treats patients with respiratory disease, including COPD, lung cancer and pulmonary complications of pregnancy such as asthma. The unique biology of women is considered when prescribing medications and treatment plans.
Women with lung disease are less likely to receive appropriate medical tests
Regardless of gender, patients choose U-M Pulmonary Care for some of the same reasons. They want opportunities for treatment and success that are not available elsewhere. U-M Pulmonary Medicine is one of two centers in Michigan that offers lung transplantation for COPD. U-M also offers lung volume reduction surgery, an advanced surgical procedure that has been shown to benefit selected patients with emphysema. U-M is also the only institution in the state that is a member of the COPD Clinical Research Network (CRN), a government-funded research network. "The physician researchers who are leaders in the field are delighted that the COPD CRN is committed to doing studies that are important for patients, and that might not otherwise get funded," says Dr. MeiLan Han, M.D., assistant professor, Division of Pulmonary and Critical Care Medicine, and director, Women's Respiratory Clinic.
There are many reasons women appreciate having a respiratory clinic just for them, but the most obvious one is perspective. "We have a unique perspective and a unique understanding about women's health," Han says.
To request an appointment with the U-M pulmonary clinic, call 888-284-LUNG. To request an appointment with the Women's Respiratory Clinic, call 734-647-9000.
Reading List
How to Quit Smoking Without Gaining Weight (American Lung Association) by Bess H. Marcus, Jeffrey S. Hampl and Edwin B. Fisher
Kicking Butts: Quit Smoking and Take Charge of Your Health by The American Cancer Society
This article appeared in the Jun/July 2006 issue of the Women's Health Newsletter. Read the issue.
