Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) is as a major global health problem; in most countries incidence is increasing, and COPD is predicted to become the fourth leading cause of death in the world by 2030. There has been important progress in management of COPD over the past decade, and this book highlights these advances in drug therapy. After a review of current management, the new developments in long-acting bronchodilators and combinations are reviewed. There is a need to find new treatments and several types of new drug are currently in development. A phosphodiesterase-4 inhibitor – roflumilast – is the first anti-inflammatory treatment that has been specifically approved for COPD and its place in therapy is discussed. In the future, it will be important to individualize treatment according to the phenotype of the patients and this may require the development of biomarkers to predict and monitor response. This book therefore brings together some of the new information about drug therapy of COPD and also looks towards future developments in this important area.