Abstract
Dyspnoea, fatigue, reduced exercise tolerance, peripheral muscle dysfunction and mood disorders are common features of many chronic respiratory disorders. Pulmonary rehabilitation successfully treats these manifestations in chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) and emerging evidence suggests that these benefits could be extended to other chronic respiratory conditions, although adaptations to the standard programme format may be required. Whilst the benefits of exercise training are well established in asthma, pulmonary rehabilitation can also provide evidence-based interventions including breathing techniques and self-management training. In interstitial lung disease, a small number of trials show improved exercise capacity, symptoms and quality of life following pulmonary rehabilitation, which is a positive development for patients who may have few treatment options. In pulmonary arterial hypertension, exercise training is safe and effective if patients are stable on medical therapy and close supervision is provided. Pulmonary rehabilitation for bronchiectasis, including exercise training and airway clearance techniques, improves exercise capacity and quality of life. In nonsmall cell lung cancer, a comprehensive interdisciplinary approach is required to ensure the success of pulmonary rehabilitation following surgery. Pulmonary rehabilitation programmes provide important and underutilised opportunities to improve the integrated care of people with chronic respiratory disorders other than COPD.
Footnotes
Previous articles in this Series. No. 1: Gloeckl R, Marinov B, Pitta F. Practical recommendations for exercise training in patients with COPD. Eur Respir Rev 2013; 22: 178–186. No. 2: Hill K, Vogiatzis I, Burtin C. The importance of components of pulmonary rehabilitation, other than exercise training, in COPD. Eur Respir Rev 2013 22: 405–413.
Conflict of interest: Disclosures can be found alongside the online version of this article at err.ersjournals.com
Provenance: Submitted article, peer reviewed.
- Received August 21, 2013.
- Accepted September 24, 2013.
- ©ERS 2013
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