Exercise rehabilitation and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease stage

To determine the extent to which patients with Stage 1 COPD experience impr ovements in physical performance and quality of life as a result of exercis e training, and to compare these improvements with those seen in Stage I an d II patients, 151 patients with COPD underwent a 12-wk exercise program. O utcomes were measured at baseline and follow-up. Physical performance was e valuated by means of a 6-min walk, treadmill time, an overhead task, and a stair climb. General health-related quality of life was assessed in terms o f the domains of Social Function, Health Perceptions, and Life Satisfaction . Disease-specific health-related quality of life was assessed with the Chr onic Respiratory Disease Questionnaire (CRQ). Six-minute walk distance incr eased significantly in Stage 1 (200.5 ft [95% CI: 165.4, 235.7]), Stage II (238.3 ft [:143.3, 333.3]), and Stage III (112.1 ft 134.6, 189.6]) particip ants. Treadmill time increased significantly in Stage 1 (0.42 min [0.20, 0. 64]) and Stage II (0.64 min [0.14, 1.4]) participants. Time to complete the overhead task decreased significantly in Stage I (0.91 s [1.72, 0.11]) and Stage II (1.39 s [:2.66, 0.13]) participants. None of the measures of gene ral health-related quality of life improved in any of the three groups. Par ticipants in Stages I, II, and III all experienced improvements in the CRQ domains of dyspnea (0.72 [0.53, 0.91], 0.47 [0.02, 0.91], and 0.46 [0.05, 0 .87], respectively) and fatigue (0.49 [0.33, 0.66], 0.54 [0.20, 0.87], and 0.55 [0.05, 1.05], respectively). These results suggest that all patients w ith COPD will benefit from exercise rehabilitation.