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Effects of a Diaphragmatic Breathing Training Program in Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease (COPD) Patients

NCT01223807 · Status: COMPLETED · Phase: NA · Type: INTERVENTIONAL · Enrollment: 30

Last updated 2010-10-19

No results posted yet for this study

Summary

Diaphragmatic dysfunction and alterations of thoracoabdominal motions are common in patients with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD). Several studies have described an impairment in diaphragmatic mobility of COPD patients compared to age matched control subjects and it has been associated with increase in dyspnea, exercise intolerance and mortality. COPD patients also experiment a higher activity of the accessory breathing muscles, which greatly increases the work of breathing and dyspnea sensation.

Breathing strategies have been considered an important component of pulmonary rehabilitation and refer to a range of techniques, including/which includes the diaphragmatic breathing (DB). The principal aim of DB is to improve the participation of the abdominal motion while reducing the accessory muscles activity. The role of DB as an adjunctive treatment modality in the rehabilitation of COPD patients remains controversial. Despite the conflicting results, improvement of the abdominal motion and a reduction of thoracic excursion, during voluntarily DB, has been described as a common finding of several studies. The investigators hypothesized that a 4-week DBTP could induce higher participation of the diaphragm and this modification would relieve respiratory symptoms and improve exercise tolerance and the HRQoL. Therefore, in this randomized controlled trial the investigators aimed to test the effects of a short-term DBTP on thoracoabdominal motion, pulmonary function, diaphragmatic mobility, dyspnea, HRQoL and exercise tolerance in patients with mild to severe COPD.

Conditions

Interventions

OTHER

Diaphragmatic breathing training

The training group will participate in a diaphragmatic breathing program which will consist of three 45-min sessions each week (12 sessions totally). The program training will be individualized and supervised by the same physiotherapist. In each session, the patients will be initially instructed to perform 3 series of 10 maximally inspirations, predominantly with abdominal motion, while reducing upper rib cage motion in a supine position.

Sponsors & Collaborators

  • University of Sao Paulo

    lead OTHER

Study Design

Allocation
RANDOMIZED
Purpose
TREATMENT
Masking
SINGLE
Model
PARALLEL

Eligibility

Min Age
50 Years
Max Age
80 Years
Sex
ALL
Healthy Volunteers
No

Timeline & Regulatory

Start
2008-06-30
Primary Completion
2009-12-31

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Read the full study record

This page highlights key information. For complete eligibility criteria, study locations, investigator contacts, and the full protocol, visit the original record on ClinicalTrials.gov.

View NCT01223807 on ClinicalTrials.gov