Good repeatability ( for the 6MWT and ESWT ) and reproducibility ( for the 6MWT , 12-minute walk test , ISWT , ESWT , and incremental cycle ergometer test ) were reported by most studies assessing these tests , providing patients were familiarized with them beforeh and .
The 6MWT , ISWT , and particularly the ESWT were reported to be sensitive to therapeutic intervention .
Exercise tests are often used to evaluate the functional status of patients with COPD .
However , to the best of our knowledge , a comprehensive systematic comparison of these tests has not been performed .
We systematic ally review ed studies reporting the repeatability and /or reproducibility of these tests , and studies comparing their sensitivity to therapeutic intervention .
The functional impact of an individualized, graded, outpatient pulmonary rehabilitation in end-stage chronic obstructive pulmonary disease.
OBJECTIVE To evaluate the functional impact of an individualized outpatient pulmonary rehabilitation program in end-stage chronic obstructive pulmonary disease ( COPD ) . METHODS Patients with end-stage COPD were admitted into a 6-week comprehensive outpatient pulmonary rehabilitation program that was " packaged " for each patient . We compared spirometric parameters , exercise tolerance , level of breathlessness , and intensity of work before and after rehabilitation . RESULTS Of 45 eligible patients , only 14 consented to participate in the study . All 14 patients had forced expiratory volume in 1 second < 35 % of predicted , and 10 patients ( 72 % ) had a 6-minute walk test < 180 m. The level of breathlessness was between 7 ( moderate to severely breathless ) and 10 ( maximally breathless ) on the Visual Analogue Scale in all patients . After the program , there was significant improvement in the FEV 1 P = 0.04 ) , forced vital capacity P = 0.0045 ) , 6-minute walk test P = 0.00047 ) , and shuttle-walk test ( 9 of 14 patients ) . All patients had some improvement in level of dyspnea . CONCLUSIONS Individualized outpatient pulmonary rehabilitation in end-stage COPD can produce a measurable improvement in spirometry and exercise tolerance with a favorable impact on the level of physical activity
Good repeatability ( for the 6MWT and ESWT ) and reproducibility ( for the 6MWT , 12-minute walk test , ISWT , ESWT , and incremental cycle ergometer test ) were reported by most studies assessing these tests , providing patients were familiarized with them beforeh and .
The 6MWT , ISWT , and particularly the ESWT were reported to be sensitive to therapeutic intervention .
Exercise tests are often used to evaluate the functional status of patients with COPD .
However , to the best of our knowledge , a comprehensive systematic comparison of these tests has not been performed .
We systematic ally review ed studies reporting the repeatability and /or reproducibility of these tests , and studies comparing their sensitivity to therapeutic intervention .