Rehabilitation for chronic obstructive pulmonary disease patients - Exercise training component - Clinical Review.
Vijayan, V.K.; Reetha, A.M.
Lung India; 1995; 13; 71-74.
Even Though Barach in 1964 advocated physical exercise for patients with chronic lung diseases, it was only in early 1970s that a liberal use of exercise training was included in pulmonary rehabilitation programme. The relentless downhill course of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) over many years and the concomitant worsening of dyspneoa limit the activity of patients, leading to a vicious cycle of increasing inactivity and dyspnoea. This in turn aggravates the debilitating effects of the disease. Exercise training has been advocated as an important component in pulmonary rehabilitation to improve well-being and to reduce subsequent hospital admissions in patients with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease.
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