Bronchopulmonary hygiene physical therapy for chronic obstructive pulmonary disease and bronchiectasis

Bronchopulmonary hygiene physical therapy is a form of chest physical therapy including chest percussion and postural drainage to remove lung secretions. These are applied commonly to patients with both acute and chronic airway diseases. Despite controversies in the literature regarding its efficacy, it remains in use in a variety of clinical settings. The various forms of this therapy are labour intensive and need to be evaluated.

The objective of this review was to assess the effects of bronchial hygiene physical therapy in people with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease and bronchiectasis.

We searched the Cochrane Airways Group trials register and reference lists of articles up to July 1997. We also wrote to study authors.

Randomised trials in which postural drainage, chest percussion, vibration, chest shaking, directed coughing or forced exhalation technique was compared to other drainage or breathing techniques, placebo or no treatment.

Two reviewers applied the inclusion and exclusion criteria on masked publications independently. They assessed the trial quality independently. Only data from the first arm of crossover trials were included.

The seven included trials involved six comparisons and a total of 126 people. The trials were small and not generally of high quality. The results could not be combined as trials addressed different patient groups and outcomes. In most comparisons, bronchial hygiene physical therapy produced no significant effects on pulmonary function, apart from clearing sputum in chronic obstructive pulmonary disease and in bronchiectasis.

There is not enough evidence to support or refute the use of bronchial hygiene physical therapy in people with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease and bronchiectasis.