Effects of High-Flow Nasal Cannula on Exercise Outcomes in Lung Transplant Candidates: A Pilot Study

Summary

The study evaluated patients on the national lung transplant waiting list. It was pioneering in assessing high-complexity patients with severe pulmonary diseases subjected to a cardiopulmonary rehabilitation protocol using a treadmill. The main findings indicate that the distance covered in the six-minute walk test was greater when using the high-flow nasal cannula supplementation. The improvement in exercise performance in this group is associated with a reduction in arterial carbon dioxide, optimization of hydrogen potential, and a decrease in dynamic hyperinflation, leading to fewer symptoms of dyspnea.

Conditions

• Pulmonary Diseases
• Oxygen Therapy
• High-flow Nasal Cannula
• Exercise Tolerance

Interventions

OTHER

Performance Tests

Three functional tests were performed: the six-minute walk test, incremental lower limb test with arterial blood gas analysis, and lower limb endurance test with inspiratory capacity measurement. Each test was conducted on different days with different devices: HFNC and conventional oxygen therapy, totaling six test days. The inspired oxygen fraction (FiO2) was titrated to maintain normoxia between 90% to 96% and was kept constant for both interfaces.

OTHER

Functional Tests

Three functional tests were performed: the six-minute walk test, incremental lower limb test with arterial blood gas analysis, and lower limb endurance test with inspiratory capacity measurement. Each test was conducted on different days with different devices: HFNC and conventional oxygen therapy, totaling six test days. The inspired oxygen fraction (FiO2) was titrated to maintain normoxia between 90% to 96% and was kept constant for both interfaces.

Sponsors & Collaborators

• Hospital Israelita Albert Einstein

  lead OTHER

Principal Investigators

• Elaine Cristina Pereira · Albert Einstein Israelite Hospital

• José Eduardo Afonso Júnior · Albert Einstein Israelite Hospital

• Melline Della Torre de Almeida · Albert Einstein Israelite Hospital

• Priscila Borelli Pereira Leite · Albert Einstein Israelite Hospital

• Thaise de Lucca Cappeline · Albert Einstein Israelite Hospital

• Thaís Melatto Loschi · Albert Einstein Israelite Hospital

• Vanuza Ferreira dos Santos · Albert Einstein Israelite Hospital

• Luciana Diniz Nagem Janot de Matos · Albert Einstein Israelite Hospital

Study Design

Allocation

RANDOMIZED

Purpose

OTHER

Masking

NONE

Model

CROSSOVER

Eligibility

Min Age

30 Years

Max Age

69 Years

Sex

ALL

Healthy Volunteers

No

Timeline & Regulatory

Start

2021-06-02

Primary Completion

2023-03-31

Completion

2024-07-24

Countries

• Brazil

Study Locations