{
  "abstract": "Background\n\nChronic breathlessness contributes substantially to the global health burden and healthcare use, yet data on its prevalence and impacts in lower-resource settings remain limited. We investigated the prevalence, self-reported underlying conditions, and impacts of breathlessness at the population level in South Africa.Methods\n\nWe conducted a cross-sectional online survey in English among community-dwelling adults aged 18 years or older. The sample was stratified by age, sex, and rurality to reflect the 2022 National Census. Self-reported data included sociodemographic characteristics; breathlessness, assessed using the modified Medical Research Council (mMRC) breathlessness scale; employment; activities of daily living, assessed using an item from the London Chest Activities of Daily Living; quality of life, assessed using the EQ-5D-5L and EQ visual analogue scale; and disability, assessed using the 12-item World Health Organization Disability Assessment Schedule 2.0. We analysed the weighted dataset using descriptive statistics.Results\n\nWe included 2,828 respondents with a mean age of 37.1 years (standard deviation = 12.4), of whom 52.3% were female. Clinically important breathlessness (mMRC ≥ 2) was reported by 189 respondents (6.7%), with a median duration of 3.1 years (interquartile range = 1.5-5.4). The most commonly reported attributions were lung conditions other than tuberculosis (23.8%), 'other' factors (16.4%), and anaemia (11.6%). Clinically important breathlessness was associated with poorer perceived health, lower quality of life, and higher total disability scores than mild (mMRC 1) or no breathlessness (mMRC 0). Mobility and participation were the most affected disability domains. Among respondents with an mMRC≥2, 64 (33.8%) reported an impact on employment, of whom 49 (76.6%) had ceased full-time work, while 171 (90.3%) respondents reported an impact on daily activities.Conclusions\n\nWe estimate that more than four million people in South Africa live with clinically important breathlessness. The symptom is associated with poorer quality of life, greater disability, reduced employment, and impaired function. The life-changing effects of this debilitating symptom among community-dwelling adults should be investigated in longitudinal studies to help inform clinical policy and practice.",
  "abstract_shown": true,
  "affiliations": [
    "College of Medicine and Public Health, Flinders University, Adelaide, Australia.",
    "Faculty of Health, University of Technology Sydney, Sydney, Australia.",
    "Faculty of Science, Medicine and Health, University of Wollongong, Wollongong, Australia.",
    "Centre for Health Policy and Management, Discipline of Public Health and Primary Care, School of Medicine, Trinity College Dublin, University of Dublin, Dublin, Ireland.",
    "Wolfson Palliative Care Research Centre, University of Hull, Hull, UK.",
    "Respiratory Medicine, Allergology and Palliative Medicine, Department of Clinical Sciences Lund, Lund University, Lund, Sweden.",
    "Department of Health, Blekinge Institute of Technology, Karlskrona, Sweden.",
    "Division of Pulmonology and UCT Lung Institute, Department of Medicine, University of Cape Town and Groote Schuur Hospital, Cape Town, South Africa."
  ],
  "article_type": "research article",
  "arxiv": null,
  "author_total": 10,
  "authors": [
    {
      "affs": [
        0,
        1
      ],
      "name": "Slavica Kochovska"
    },
    {
      "affs": [
        2
      ],
      "name": "Vanessa N Brunelli"
    },
    {
      "affs": [
        1
      ],
      "name": "Sungwon Chang"
    },
    {
      "affs": [
        3
      ],
      "name": "Irina Kinchin"
    },
    {
      "affs": [
        0
      ],
      "name": "Danny J Eckert"
    },
    {
      "affs": [
        4
      ],
      "name": "Joseph D Clark"
    },
    {
      "affs": [
        5,
        6
      ],
      "name": "Jacob Sandberg",
      "orcid": "0000-0003-1863-2033"
    },
    {
      "affs": [
        5
      ],
      "name": "Magnus Ekström"
    },
    {
      "affs": [
        0
      ],
      "name": "David C Currow",
      "orcid": "0000-0003-1988-1250"
    },
    {
      "affs": [
        7
      ],
      "name": "Richard N van Zyl-Smit"
    }
  ],
  "bibtex": "https://research.draconitic.com/paper/289w1w7w0x7kr.bib",
  "cited_by": 0,
  "doi": "10.7189/jogh.16.04229",
  "fulltext_url": "https://europepmc.org/articles/PMC13650972",
  "id": "289w1w7w0x7kr",
  "issns": [
    "2047-2978",
    "2047-2986"
  ],
  "landing_url": "https://europepmc.org/article/MED/42852612",
  "language": "eng",
  "licence": "CC-BY",
  "licence_label": "CC BY",
  "licence_source": "article",
  "licence_url": "https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/",
  "metadata_licence": null,
  "native_subjects": [
    [
      "openalex",
      "2740|Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease (COPD) Research"
    ]
  ],
  "openalex": "W7221172191",
  "pdf_url": "https://europepmc.org/articles/PMC13650972?pdf=render",
  "pmcid": "PMC13650972",
  "pmid": "42852612",
  "published": "2026-10-09",
  "publisher": null,
  "ris": "https://research.draconitic.com/paper/289w1w7w0x7kr.ris",
  "sources": [
    {
      "first_seen": "2026-10-30T12:18:02Z",
      "native_id": "MED:42852612",
      "source": "europepmc",
      "url": "https://europepmc.org/article/MED/42852612"
    }
  ],
  "subjects": [
    {
      "field": "medicine",
      "origin": "openalex:2740|Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease (COPD) Research",
      "subfield": "general"
    }
  ],
  "title": "Prevalence and impacts of breathlessness in South Africa: an exploratory, cross-sectional population study.",
  "title_text": "Prevalence and impacts of breathlessness in South Africa: an exploratory, cross-sectional population study.",
  "type": "peer-reviewed",
  "updated_at": "2026-10-30T12:18:02Z",
  "url": "https://research.draconitic.com/paper/289w1w7w0x7kr",
  "venue": "Journal of global health",
  "versions": []
}