There is well established evidence that the minute ventilation (V'_E)/carbon dioxide output (V'_CO2) relationship is relevant to a number of patient-related outcomes in COPD. In most circumstances, an increased V'_E/V'_CO2 reflects an enlarged physiological dead space ("wasted" ventilation), although alveolar hyperventilation (largely due to increased chemosensitivity) may play an adjunct role, particularly in patients with coexistent cardiovascular disease. The V'_E/V'_CO2 nadir, in particular, has been found to be an important predictor of dyspnoea and poor exercise tolerance, even in patients with largely preserved forced expiratory volume in 1 s. As the disease progresses, a high nadir might help to unravel the cause of disproportionate breathlessness. When analysed in association with measurements of dynamic inspiratory constraints, a high V'_E/V'_CO2 is valuable to ascertain a role for the "lungs" in limiting dyspnoeic patients. Regardless of disease severity, cardiocirculatory (heart failure and pulmonary hypertension) and respiratory (lung fibrosis) comorbidities can further increase V'_E/V'_CO2. A high V'_E/V'_CO2 is a predictor of poor outcome in lung resection surgery, adding value to resting lung hyperinflation in predicting all-cause and respiratory mortality across the spectrum of disease severity. Considering its potential usefulness, the V'_E/V'_CO2 should be valued in the clinical management of patients with COPD.

有充分确定的证据表明，每分钟通气量 ( V ' _E )/二氧化碳输出量 ( V ' _{CO 2} ) 关系与 COPD 中的许多患者相关结果相关。在大多数情况下，增加的V ' _E / V ' _{CO 2}反映了扩大的生理死腔（“浪费”通气），尽管肺泡过度通气（主要是由于化学敏感性增加）可能起到辅助作用，特别是在同时存在心血管疾病的患者中. V ' _E / V ' _{CO 2} _特别是最低点，已被发现是呼吸困难和运动耐力差的重要预测指标，即使在 1 秒内用力呼气量基本保持不变的患者中也是如此。随着疾病的进展，高最低值可能有助于揭示不成比例的呼吸困难的原因。当结合动态吸气限制的测量进行分析时，高V ' _E / V ' _{CO 2}对于确定“肺”在限制呼吸困难患者中的作用是有价值的。无论疾病严重程度如何，心脏循环（心力衰竭和肺动脉高压）和呼吸（肺纤维化）合并症可进一步增加V ' _E / V ' _CO2 . 高V ' _E / V ' _{CO 2}是肺切除手术结果不佳的预测指标，增加了静息肺过度充气在预测疾病严重程度范围内的全因死亡率和呼吸系统死亡率方面的价值。考虑到其潜在用途， V ' _E / V ' _{CO 2}在 COPD 患者的临床管理中应该受到重视。