title: Effects of pulmonary rehabilitation in bronchiectasis: A retrospective study.
abstract: There is limited information about the benefits of pulmonary rehabilitation (PR) in patients with bronchiectasis. This study aimed to evaluate the effects of an out-patient PR program in patients with a primary diagnosis of bronchiectasis and to compare them with a matched COPD group who completed the same PR program. A retrospective review was conducted of patients with bronchiectasis or COPD who completed 6 to 8 weeks of PR at two tertiary institutions. The outcome measures were the 6-minute walk distance (6MWD) and Chronic Respiratory Disease Questionnaire (CRQ). Ninety-five patients with bronchiectasis completed the PR (48 male; FEV(1) 63 [24] % predicted; age 67 [10] years). Significant improvements in 6MWD (mean change 53.4 m, 95% CI 45.0 to 61.7) and CRQ total score (mean change 14.0 units, 95% CI 11.3 to 16.7) were observed immediately following PR. In patients with complete follow-up (n = 37), these improvements remained significantly higher than baseline at 12 months (20.5 m, 95% CI 1.4 to 39.5 for 6MWD; 12.1 points, 95% CI 5.7 to 18.4 for CRQ total score). The time trend and changes in the 6MWD and CRQ scores were not significantly different between the bronchiectasis and the COPD groups (all p > 0.05). This study supports the inclusion of patients with bronchiectasis in existing PR programs. Further prospective RCTs are warranted to substantiate these findings.
authors.affiliation: Physiotherapy, Melbourne School of Health Sciences, The University of Melbourne, Victoria, Australia.
authors.forename: H K
authors.initials: HK
authors.lastname: Ong
authors.forename: A L
authors.initials: AL
authors.lastname: Lee
authors.forename: C J
authors.initials: CJ
authors.lastname: Hill
authors.forename: A E
authors.initials: AE
authors.lastname: Holland
authors.forename: L
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Denehy
mesh_terms: D000368:Aged; D000704:Analysis of Variance; D001987:Bronchiectasis / Q000534:rehabilitation*; D005080:Exercise Test; D005081:Exercise Therapy; D017079:Exercise Tolerance / Q000502:physiology*; D005260:Female; D005541:Forced Expiratory Volume / Q000502:physiology; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D010353:Patient Education as Topic; D029424:Pulmonary Disease, Chronic Obstructive / Q000534:rehabilitation; D011788:Quality of Life; D012189:Retrospective Studies; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires; D016138:Walking / Q000502:physiology*