Improved breathing capacity during exercise in severe obstructive airway disease

In severe COPD, ventilation at peak exercise may exceed the resting maximal voluntary ventilation (MVV). We investigated the mechanisms by which the breathing capacity can improve during exercise in COPD. A total of 13 patients with an FEV1 of 32+/-12% (SD) predicted, performed an incremental maximal exercise test and FVC and MVV maneuvers at rest and during constant work rate exercise. Maximal exercise ventilation was 3+/-2 L/min higher than resting MVV. Breathing capacity improved during exercise; resting MVV was 30+/-3 (SE) L/min, while it reached 38+/-3 L/min during exercise (P < 0.002). FEV1 improved from 0.86+/-0.1 L at rest to 1.01+/-0.1 L during exercise (P < 0.004), which is consistent with exercise-induced bronchodilatation. It is concluded that in severe COPD, breathing capacity improves during exercise. Assuming that the change in FEV1 reflects improved airway function, these data suggest that exercise-induced bronchodilatation contributed to that improvement.