Wu M, et al. - This study investigated if sustained benefits can be derived from the adoption of personal-preferred exercise modalities (PPEMs) by chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) patients for daily training. Findings suggested that extra daily PPEMs could have a beneficial impact in COPD patients, and the benefit may sustain at least for 1year.

Methods

• In this study, researchers randomly assigned stable COPD patients to the daily PPEMs group or the control group (without extra exercise apart from daily life activities).
• All other treatments were similar.
• Health-related quality of life (HRQoL), measured with St. George's Respiratory Questionnaire (SGRQ) score at 12 months was the study primary outcome.
• The Borg dyspnea score, 6-minute walking distance (6MWD), and lung function variables were other measures.

Results

• Data reported that 94 patients constituted the intention-to-treat (ITT) population, 68 of them completed the study protocol over 12 months (the PP-population).
• Findings demonstrated that PPEMs group showed a greater decline of SGRQ score (improvemen of HRQoL) than controls over 12 months (-19.1 vs. -9.0 in the ITT population and -19.1 vs. -8.7 in the PP population, P≤0.001 for all comparisons), the reduction exceeded the minimal clinically important difference of ≥ 4 points.
• Researchers noted that the PPEMs group also exhibited a greater reduction than the control group in Borg score at 12 months in the ITT and the PP population as well (P< 0.01).
• They observed no significant improvement in 6MWD or in lung function variables.