Many individuals are erroneously assigned a diagnosis of COPD/asthma without objective diagnostic testing. It is recommended that confirmatory testing be used to make the diagnosis of airflow obstruction in patients with respiratory symptoms. Starting long-term maintenance treatments without first objectively diagnosing COPD/asthma results in unnecessary treatment in those patients who do not actually have the disease. This exposes these patients to both the side-effects and the cost of these medications, and might delay the appropriate diagnosis.
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