Purpose: This study was designed to investigate the ability of telemonitoring involving a secure elec-tronic database called “Alsayed System for Applied Medical-Care Improvement” (ASAMI) to detect at least 95% of acute exacerbations of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (AECOPD). Methods: This prospective observational study, which took place over 16 months in 2022-2023, was based at a medi-cal center in Jordan. The study group participants were patients with COPD (from seven countries) with mixed levels of airflow limitation severity, and every participant was followed for six months. A customized, password-protected version of ASAMI was used to collect data during the study. The implemented diary included questions on daily symptoms such as cough, dyspnea, sputum, and daily physical activities. The detection of AECOPD events was initially based on daily questionnaires com-pleted by patients, followed by the assessment of a healthcare practitioner. Results: 87 participants were monitored for AECOPD. During the study, 78/87 (89.7%) patients presented with one or more exacerbation episodes. The mean (range) age was 59.7 (45-81) years, predominantly male (66%), with moderate airflow limitation (n=42, 48%). Compliance with the provision of daily symptom data was very high, 98% over the entire study period. A total of 189 confirmed AECOPD episodes were reported. Almost all patients and practitioners showed favorable satisfaction with the role of the ASAMI-related service (96% reported a score of 10 satisfaction). The telemonitoring tool was able to detect 99% of AECOPD episodes. Conclusion: The novel ASAMI software was effective as a telemonitoring tool to detect the episodes of AECOPD. The tool was suggested for daily, continuous reporting of respiratory symptoms, with the key benefits being ease of use, patient acceptance, and collation of supplementary data when exacerbations occur. The effects of its widespread use on decision-making can be clarified by evaluating its impact on routine clinical decision-making.

Purpose: This study aimed to describe the molecular epidemiology and seasonality of human rhinovirus (HRV) in chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) and its association with COPD exacerbations in Abu Dhabi, the United Arab Emirates (UAE). Methods: Sputum specimens were collected for analysis from all COPD patients who visited a medical center from November 2021 to October 2022. The real-time quantitative polymerase chain reaction (qPCR) test was used to detect HRV. Results: Of the 78 COPD patients included in the study, 58 (74%) pa-tients presented with one or more exacerbation episodes. The incidence of COPD exacerbation peaked over the winter and substantially decreased during the summer. HRV positivity in pa-tients during exacerbation (E1) was 11/58 (19%) and 15/58 (26%) two weeks after the exacerbation episode (E2). There was no significant difference in the HRV load in these patients. No statistically significant difference was observed in the detection of HRV during exacerbation compared to patients with stable COPD. Conclusion: This is the first study to assess the association between HRV detection by qPCR and COPD exacerbations in the UAE. The high sensitivity of the detec-tion technology helped collect reliable epidemiologic data. Few studies have provided similar Middle East data. This study's pattern of COPD exacerbations and HRV detection parallels that of temperate countries. This information can help with future, more extensive surveillance of res-piratory viruses in the UAE and the Middle East and their association with COPD exacerbations.