Use and Benefits
The CAT is heralded as a quick, easy, and painless way to get an objective look at how COPD impacts your life. Ultimately, it can help improve your patient-healthcare provider communication about the disease.
Some clinicians have not adopted the CAT in their daily practice, citing studies showing that using the test is not an effective way to evaluate the measure of lung function—that it only provides a look at the disease’s impact on a person’s health status. However, many clinicians do use it, largely because of an evolution in thought about the value of diagnostic testing. Some studies also suggest that CAT may be useful in predicting the risk of exacerbations, the development of depression, and the progression of symptomatic disease.
Beyond Diagnostic Testing
The year 2011 was characterized by a sea change in how COPD was approached, medically speaking. It was then that the scientific committee of the Global Initiative for Obstructive Lung Disease (GOLD) issued recommendations stating that COPD should no longer be treated based solely on diagnostic tests like spirometry. The GOLD committee recognized that these tests, while valuable, had shortcomings in their ability to assess what a person was experiencing.
In some cases, for example, a person with COPD may be diagnosed with minor impairment but be unable to walk up a flight of stairs. By contrast, a person with moderate impairment may function more normally than diagnostic tests were able to suggest.
The updated guidelines acknowledged that the expression of COPD is based on many intersecting factors, including the restriction of respiratory function, the frequency of exacerbations, and the person’s own perception of their illness.
The CAT helps quantify these factors based on a patient’s experience.
How the CAT Works
The COPD assessment test is both simple and highly descriptive. The eight questions are each rated on a scale of 0 to 5. The numbers are then tallied for a score of 0 to 40. The higher the number, the more serious the impairment.
The range of questions is related to different aspects of the disease as follows:
You may also request to take the test in its entirety at your healthcare provider’s office and review the results right there and then.
Results and Next Steps
While the CAT is not used to diagnose COPD and cannot replace COPD treatments, it is valuable in determining when treatment should be started, how many treatments should be prescribed, and how well or poorly a person is responding to treatment.
Based on the GOLD guidelines:
Persons with CAT scores higher than 10 should receive daily therapy as soon as possible. Any upward trend is considered a deterioration in one’s condition. Any downward trend is considered an improvement. Any increase of more than two points, either up or down, is considered a significant change in symptom control.
A Word From Verywell
The CAT is a simple, noninvasive test that can give both you and your healthcare provider quantitative insight into your COPD condition and see how well you’re responding to care. While taking this test can’t help you diagnose the disease, it’s a great, free tool to use if you’ve been battling the condition that can help you monitor your therapy.
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