[The efficacy and practice of exercise training in patients with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD)]

Exertional dyspnea is a most popular symptom in COPD patients often lead to exercise intolerance. Indeed the reduced activity in patient's daily life due to dyspnea may lead to deconditioning and peripheral muscle weakness. Bronchodilators and anti-inflammatory drugs are an important treatment to reduce symptoms and improve airflow limitation but not improve deconditioning. Impairment of exercise tolerance is a common problem in patients with COPD and therefore exercise training is an important component of all pulmonary rehabilitation programs. It is now clearly established that exercise training reduce dyspnea, improve exercise tolerance and improve activities of daily living (ADL) and health related quality of life (QOL). Oxygen therapy during exercise are often considered in the COPD patients with exercise induced hypoxemia.