Thousands of Australians with the chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) may be missing out of some of the most effective non-drug treatments available to help people with the debilitating condition, a new research by the Australian Center for Asthma Monitoring (ACAM) showed Wednesday.

COPD killed almost 5,900 Australians in 2011. It is a progressive disease. Sufferers experience increasingly severe breathlessness and limitation in their ability to do simple daily tasks.

Smoking is the primary cause but other causes include air pollution and occupational exposure to dusts and fumes. An earlier report estimated the direct health expenditure attributed to COPD was 929 million AU dollars (almost $873.33 million) in the 2008-09 financial year.

The report, entitled "Monitoring pulmonary rehabilitation and long-term oxygen therapy for people with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) in Australia: A discussion paper", published on Wednesday, makes a case for national monitoring of these non-drug therapies to paint a clearer picture of treatment practice for people with COPD.

According to this report, COPD affects about one in 13 people aged 40 and over, and is the fifth leading cause of death in Australia. The condition, most commonly caused by smoking, is degenerative in nature but several treatments are available to help make life more bearable for sufferers.

The problem, according to the new paper, is that many people with COPD may be missing out on two of the most effective non-drug treatments for the condition.

The report confirmed that pulmonary rehabilitation, a program of exercise, education and psychosocial support, has been proven to help keep patients out of hospital and improve their quality of life. Long-term oxygen therapy, an at-home treatment for people with persistently low levels of oxygen in their blood, has been shown to prolong survival.

Professor Guy Marks, one of the report's authors and Head, Respiratory & Environmental Epidemiology at the Woolcock Institute of Medical Research, said both are well established as safe and effective therapies for patients with COPD.

"Here you have two of the most effective interventions recommended in national and international clinical guidelines," Marks said. "Sadly, it seems that many people may not be using them and, therefore, are missing out on opportunities for improved health and wellbeing in daily life."

Compounding the issue, there are no data available to show the extent of the shortfall, where the gaps are and why they exist, he said.

"Currently it's impossible to know if it's a problem with availability of the treatments or whether it's a case of patients not knowing about them or not being able to access them for some other reason," Marks explained.

"Having information about the availability and use of these key interventions would give us an opportunity to improve treatment, and ultimately the health, of thousands of Australians with this disease," Marks added.