title: Improved quality of life after lung volume reduction surgery.
abstract: Lung volume reduction surgery (LVRS) improves dyspnoea, pulmonary function, and physical performance in patients with severe pulmonary emphysema. This study investigated the impact of LVRS on health-related quality of life (HRQL) over a 2-yr period following surgery. Thirty-nine consecutive patients were prospectively assessed before LVRS, and followed over 24 months postoperatively. The assessments included pulmonary function, dyspnoea (Medical Research Council (MRC) dyspnoea score), 6-min walking distance (6MWD) and HRQL using the Short Form 36-item questionnaire (SF-36). Several domains of SF-36 improved considerably over 2 yrs after surgery: Physical Functioning: 39 +/- 4 (mean +/- SEM) versus 16 +/- 2 (p<0.01); Vitality: 51 +/- 3 versus 32 +/- 3 (p<0.01); Social Functioning: 72 +/- 4 versus 51 +/- 5 (p<0.01). Also, improvements in pulmonary function (forced expiratory volume in one second (FEV1): 27 +/- 1% predicted, residual volume (RV)/total lung capacity (TLC): 0.65 +/- 0.01), 6 MWD (274 +/- 16 m) and dyspnoea (MRC: 3.9 +/- 01) were sustained for up to 2 yrs after LVRS (FEV1 36 +/- 2% pred, RV/TLC: 0.58 +/- 0.02; 6 MWD: 342 +/- 19 m; MRC: 2.0 +/- 0.2; p<0.05). In patients with severe emphysema, lung volume reduction surgery had positive effects on health-related quality of life and pulmonary function over 2 yrs.
authors.affiliation: Dept of Internal Medicine, University Hospital, Zürich, Switzerland.
authors.forename: J
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Hamacher
authors.forename: S
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Büchi
authors.forename: C L
authors.initials: CL
authors.lastname: Georgescu
authors.forename: U
authors.initials: U
authors.lastname: Stammberger
authors.forename: R
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Thurnheer
authors.forename: K E
authors.initials: KE
authors.lastname: Bloch
authors.forename: W
authors.initials: W
authors.lastname: Weder
authors.forename: E W
authors.initials: EW
authors.lastname: Russi
mesh_terms: D004417:Dyspnea / Q000503:physiopathology; D005260:Female; D005500:Follow-Up Studies; D005541:Forced Expiratory Volume; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D011013:Pneumonectomy; D011446:Prospective Studies; D011656:Pulmonary Emphysema / Q000503:physiopathology / Q000601:surgery*; D011788:Quality of Life; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires