Improving physical activity in COPD: towards a new paradigm.
Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) is a debilitating disease affecting patients in daily life, both physically and emotionally. Symptoms such as dyspnea and muscle fatigue, lead to exercise intolerance, which, together with behavioral issues, trigger physical inactivity, a key feature of COPD. Physical inactivity is associated with adverse clinical outcomes, including hospitalization and all-cause mortality. Increasing activity levels is crucial for effective management strategies and could lead to improved long-term outcomes. In this review we summarize objective and subjective instruments for evaluating physical activity and focus on interventions such as pulmonary rehabilitation or bronchodilators aimed at increasing activity levels. To date, only limited evidence exists to support the effectiveness of these interventions. We suggest that a multimodal approach comprising pulmonary rehabilitation, pharmacotherapy, and counselling programs aimed at addressing emotional and behavioural aspects of COPD may be an effective way to increase physical activity and improve health status in the long term.
Pulmonary Rehabilitation and Respiratory Division, UZ Gasthuisberg, Herestraat 49, B3000 Leuven, Belgium. Thierry.Troosters@med.kuleuven.be.
Thierry
T
Troosters
Thys
T
van der Molen
Michael
M
Polkey
Roberto A
RA
Rabinovich
Ioannis
I
Vogiatzis
Idelle
I
Weisman
Karoly
K
Kulich
D003376:Counseling; D004358:Drug Therapy; D017079:Exercise Tolerance / Q000502:physiology*; D006304:Health Status; D006801:Humans; D009043:Motor Activity / Q000502:physiology*; D029424:Pulmonary Disease, Chronic Obstructive / Q000503:physiopathology* / Q000534:rehabilitation / Q000628:therapy