World Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease (COPD) Day is celebrated today, 11.18. Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) is often referred to as chronic bronchitis and emphysema, and winter is the most common season for this disease. It is understood that the total number of patients with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease in China is as high as 43 million, but nearly 70% of the patients do not know they have the disease because of missed diagnosis. To add insult to injury, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease can easily lead to related diseases if left untreated. In this issue, we have excerpted a research report by Prof. Qing Miao on depression in the context of slow-onset lung disease for your reference and study. Prof. Qing Miao Director of the Department of Respiratory Medicine, Xiyuan Hospital, Chinese Academy of Traditional Chinese Medicine, M.S., Chief Physician, M.S. Supervisor, Beijing Outstanding Young and Middle-aged Physician, and Young and Middle-aged Famous Chinese Physician, Chinese Academy of Traditional Chinese Medicine. He is also a member of the Respiratory Disease Committee of the Chinese Society of Integrative Medicine, a member of the Pulmonary Disease Committee of the Chinese Society of Traditional Chinese Medicine, a deputy director of the Respiratory Disease Committee of the Beijing Society of Integrative Medicine, and a member of the Sleep Medicine Committee of the World Federation of Traditional Chinese Medicine. In recent years, it has been recognized that chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) is not a purely pulmonary disease, but is often associated with significant “extrapulmonary effects”. These include weight loss, malnutrition and skeletal muscle dysfunction, and depression. Studies have shown that the prevalence of depression/depression in COPD patients is on average 50%, with a Canadian survey finding that depressive symptoms were found in 75% of COPD patients and that the prevalence of depression and anxiety was significantly higher in COPD patients than in the normal population. Depression and anxiety are not only a consequence of COPD, but also an important reason why COPD is not easily controlled and worsens, seriously affecting the quality of life of COPD patients and being one of the important causes of exacerbation, recurrent exacerbation, and even death in COPD patients. The occurrence of COPD is related to a variety of inflammatory cells, which not only aggravate the airway inflammatory response, but also induce depressive and anxiety symptoms by affecting the emotional innervation areas in the brain. COPD patients not only have to bear the pain caused by physical diseases, but also a large number of negative emotions such as anxiety, depression, helplessness and fear. In addition, commonly used drugs for COPD, such as glucocorticoids, quinolone antibiotics, and aminophylline, can also aggravate depression and anxiety. Studies have found that COPD patients have more pronounced mood disorders, such as:depressed mood, hopelessness, self-blame, anxiety, depression, neuroticism, etc. There is even a tendency of light-heartedness, which seriously affects the quality of patients’ survival. These psychological disorders have an important impact on the recurrent attacks and development of COPD, and can trigger or aggravate the symptoms of the primary physical disease. ”A study of 162 COPD patients found that depression accounted for 19.6% of mild to moderate COPD patients and 25% of severe COPD patients, with a relative risk 2.5 times higher than that of non-COPD patients. Some domestic studies have shown that male patients are more likely to experience depression and anxiety than female patients. This may be related to the greater social and family pressures assumed than in women. A total of 42 cases (48%) of depressed mood were detected in the study of 87 COPD patients, including 25 cases of mild depression, 11 cases of moderate depression and 6 cases of severe depression. The comparison of pulmonary function indices in COPD patients with different degrees of depressive mood showed that all pulmonary function indices were significantly better in patients with no or mild depression than in patients with moderate or severe depression; the total mean quality of life score and all subindices were significantly lower in COPD patients with no or mild depressive mood than in patients with moderate or severe depression. A survey we conducted showed that COPD combined with anxiety and depression reached 70.48% of patients, which may be related to the fact that all of the included patients were from inpatients and the degree of disease was more severe than that of outpatients; in addition, during hospitalization, patients’ emotions may be influenced by other patients or the environment, and the chance of depression and anxiety increases. With the gradual aggravation of COPD, the proportion of patients presenting with severe depression and anxiety increases, and COPD combined with depression should draw our attention.