Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease is a frequent, preventable, and treatable process. It is characterized by progressive, partially reversible airway flow obstruction that can be associated with symptoms, exacerbations, and comorbidities. Its treatment involves both pharmacologic and non-pharmacologic measures and aims to alleviate symptoms, delay disease progression, and prevent exacerbations; the latter are mainly infectious in origin and deteriorate pulmonary function, life quality, and increase mortality and costs. Globally, it constitutes a major public health issue and is one of the main causes of morbimortality in which the burden extends beyond the patients; it is also one of the main causes of disability-adjusted life years in developed and in developing countries. It has been estimated that 80 million people in the world have moderate to severe forms of COPD while over 3 million died of this cause in 2005. Exacerbations are especially significant because the deterioration of the patient’s prognosis and quality of life is proportional to the severity of the exacerbation. In the US, it has been projected that the total costs of COPD for 2010 were about 49.9 billion dollars, while in Colombia it has been estimated that the average cost for an exacerbation is about 98 dollars and can rise up to nearly 700 dollars when hospitalization is required.