DECAF Score in evaluating the severity of COPD exacerbation: A cohort study

• Grant number: 24/23528-5
• Support Opportunities: Scholarships in Brazil - Scientific Initiation
• Start date: June 01, 2025
• End date: May 31, 2026
• Field of knowledge: Health Sciences - Medicine - Medical Clinics
• Principal Investigator: Júlio César Garcia de Alencar
• Grantee: Ivan Sousa Beltramini
• Host Institution: Faculdade de Medicina. Universidade de São Paulo (USP). Campus Bauru. Bauru , SP, Brazil

Abstract

Hospitalization due to acute exacerbations of COPD (AECOPD) is common, and subsequent mortality is high, with COPD being the third leading cause of death in Brazil and worldwide. The use of clinical disease severity assessment scores to predict adverse outcomes has proven to improve patient care. However, although scores such as the CURB-65 and the Pneumonia Severity Index are used to define prognosis, it is of interest to this project to validate the effectiveness and superiority of the DECAF score in this context of prognosis of patients with exacerbated COPD. We propose a prospective cohort study, carried out at the Hospital das Clínicas de Bauru, Bauru, São Paulo, which will include patients over 18 years old diagnosed with COPD and which will evaluate the association between the DECAF score, composed of Dyspnea, Eosinopenia, Lung consolidation, Acidemia, and atrial fibrillation, and mortality of patients admitted for COPD in emergency departments. As a secondary objective, we will compare the accuracy of the DECAF score in predicting exacerbated COPD outcomes compared to other scores, such as the PSI and CURB-65.