What we do
Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) and its pulmonary comorbidities now affect around 10% of the global population and kill more than 3 million patients each year. The cost for these disorders is estimated to exceed 3% of the total health care budget in the European union. While the increasing exposure to tobacco smoke is the main risk factor for COPD in many countries, additional environmental exposures may account for a substantial fraction of all patients. These environmental exposures include household and air pollution resulting from the burning of biomass other than tobacco, as well as particles and dust in the traffic environment and the building industry. Events early in life, such as premature birth, pneumonia and