A Pilot Study of the EMPOWER Music-based Intervention to Reduce Pulmonary Air Trapping in COPD

Air trapping in functional areas of the lung is common in chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD). We developed a novel music-based intervention, Engagement of Music for Pulmonary Obstruction With Expiratory Restoration (EMPOWER) aimed at reducing air trapping and functional small airways disease (fSAD) in patients with COPD.

We conducted a pilot study to assess if air trapping and fSAD in COPD patients are reduced by our targeted EMPOWER music-based singing intervention.

Participants completed four weeks of singing and vocalizing with a board-certified music therapist. Pre- and post-intervention assessments of standard pulmonary function tests (PFTs), and quantitative computed tomography (qCT) lung imaging documented changes in air trapping. Pre- and post-intervention change in psychological and patient-reported outcomes of hope, emotional wellbeing, agency and COPD symptom burden were also obtained.

All five adult participants with COPD who enrolled completed the study and reported strong interest in continuing with a similar program. Additionally, we observed trends toward improvement in qCT-measured fSAD, six-minute walk distance, and patient-reported symptoms on the COPD Assessment Test.

Results of this preliminary study showed improvements in both patient-reported and imaging respiratory outcomes, suggesting that targeted singing components in music-based interventions such as the EMPOWER intervention may support physiological lung function changes in COPD patients.