Current frequency and severity of COPD exacerbations are inevitably linked to increasing risk of subsequent exacerbations, all-cause mortality and COPD-related deaths, reveals the latest study on COPD exacerbations.  The research by a team from Imperial College, London and drugmaker AstraZeneca analysed 340,515 COPD patients to find that patients had higher rates of future exacerbations with increasing frequency and severity of baseline exacerbations compared to no baseline exacerbations. It also found that patients with increased frequency of baseline exacerbations were more likely to die from all-cause, COPD-related, and cardiovascular-related mortality in a graduated fashion. Stressing the need for adequate control measures, the study said that even a single moderate event increases the risk of future events, illustrating that every exacerbation counts.