Related Experiment Video
Updated: Dec 27, 2025
Home-Based Prescribed Pulmonary Exercise in Patients with Stable Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease
Published on: August 24, 2019
Survey of Exercise Prescription in US Pulmonary Rehabilitation Programs
Chris Garvey1, Richard Casaburi, Martijn A Spruit
1Department of Medicine, University of California San Francisco (Mr Garvey); Rehabilitation Clinical Trials Center, Los Angeles Biomedical Research Institute, Harbor-UCLA Medical Center, Torrance, California (Dr Casaburi); REVAL-Rehabilitation Research Center, BIOMED-Biomedical Research Institute, Faculty of Rehabilitation Sciences and Physiotherapy, Hasselt University, Diepenbeek, Belgium (Dr Spruit and Ms De Brandt); Department of Research and Education, CIRO+, Center of Expertise for Chronic Organ Failure, Horn, the Netherlands (Dr Spruit); and Department of Respiratory Medicine, Maastricht University Medical Centre, NUTRIM School of Nutrition and Translational Research in Metabolism, Maastricht, the Netherlands (Dr Spruit).
Purpose:
Pulmonary rehabilitation (PR) is the standard of care for chronic, symptomatic lung disease. Current scientific and clinical guidelines recommend PR to improve dyspnea, functional capacity, and quality of life. Several PR guidelines provide recommendations about the mode, intensity, duration, frequency, and progression of exercise-based interventions. There are variations in the components of PR exercise prescription that may influence the response to PR, as well as variations in how the exercise prescription and its components are determined and monitored. Therefore, the purpose of this investigation was to identify current PR exercise prescription practices via survey sent to 1758 PR programs in the United States.
Methods:
The American Association of Cardiovascular and Pulmonary Rehabilitation administered surveys in 2013 and 2016 to US-based PR providers.
Results:
Responses were returned from 371 PR providers (vs 380 in 2013). There was an increase in responses for all options describing exercise prescription methodology in the 2016 survey, with each element (frequency, intensity, time [duration], and type [mode]; FITT) demonstrating significant increase in use. There was a significant increase in 3 methods of determining exercise goals in 2016 versus 2013: duration (P = .017), distance (P = .010), and metabolic equivalents of task (P ≤ .001).
Conclusions:
The 2016 survey responses show a greater use of guideline-based exercise prescription methodology, with an increase in use of FITT methodology for exercise prescription.
Related Concept Videos
01:25Pulmonary Function Tests
Pulmonary Function Tests are crucial diagnostic tools for assessing respiratory function, particularly in patients with chronic respiratory disorders. They comprehensively evaluate lung volumes, ventilatory function, breathing mechanics, diffusion, and gas exchange. These tests help diagnose pulmonary diseases and play a significant role in monitoring disease progression, evaluating disability, and assessing response to therapy.
PFTs involve using a spirometer, a...
01:27Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease-IV: Assessement and Diagnostic Studies
Medical History
01:20Exercise and Cardiovascular Response
Light to moderate physical activity initiates a series of interconnected responses in the body. The heart rate modestly increases in anticipation of the workout, followed by widespread vasodilation as oxygen consumption by skeletal muscles increases. This results in decreased peripheral resistance, increased capillary blood flow, and accelerated...
01:24Chest Physiotherapy
Purpose
CPT is primarily used for patients with excessive bronchial secretions who have difficulty clearing...
01:26COPD: Management Using Bronchodilators and Corticosteroids
01:16Treatment for Pulmonary Arterial Hypertension: Oxygen Therapy for Respiratory Failure
Oxygen therapy is vital in increasing and maintaining blood oxygen levels in PAH patients. As a result, it aids in reducing fatigue,...