Intermittent hypoxia increases exercise tolerance in patients at risk for or with mild COPD.
The effects of repeated short-term hypoxia on exercise tolerance in patients at risk for, or with mild COPD were investigated. Eighteen patients (10 males, 8 females; 33-72 years) were randomly assigned in a double-blind fashion to receive 15 sessions of intermittent hypoxia (FiO(2): 0.15-0.12) or normoxia within 3 weeks. Three weeks of intermittent hypoxia increased total haemoglobin mass (+4% vs. 0%, p<0.05), total exercise time (+9.7% vs. 0%, p<0.05) and the exercise time to the anaerobic threshold (+13% vs. -7.8%, p<0.05) compared to controls. Changes in the total exercise time were positively related to the changes in total haemoglobin mass (r=0.59, p<0.05) and changes in the time to the anaerobic threshold were positively related to the changes in the lung diffusion capacity for carbon monoxide (r=0.48, p<0.05). Intermittent hypoxia treatment may be a valuable addition to therapy designed to improve exercise tolerance in patients at risk for, or with mild COPD.
Burtscher
M
M
Department of Sport Science, Medical Section, University of Innsbruck, Fürstenweg 185, A-6020 Innsbruck, Austria. martin.burtscher@uibk.ac.at
Haider
T
T
Domej
W
W
Linser
T
T
Gatterer
H
H
Faulhaber
M
M
Pocecco
E
E
Ehrenburg
I
I
Tkatchuk
E
E
Koch
R
R
Bernardi
L
L
D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D015308:Anaerobic Threshold / Q000502:physiology; D000704:Analysis of Variance; D002248:Carbon Monoxide / Q000378:metabolism; D004311:Double-Blind Method; D015444:Exercise / Q000502:physiology*; D005080:Exercise Test; D017079:Exercise Tolerance / Q000502:physiology*; D005260:Female; D006454:Hemoglobins / Q000378:metabolism; D006801:Humans; D000860:Hypoxia; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D029424:Pulmonary Disease, Chronic Obstructive / Q000503:physiopathology*; D018570:Risk Assessment; D013997:Time Factors
D006454:Hemoglobins; D002248:Carbon Monoxide