Effects of exercise training with warm-up specific to inspiratory muscles in COPD patients

Objective: The aim is to investigate and interpret the effects of inspiratory muscle training, which is initiated with the warm-up specific to inspiratory muscles, in addition, to exercise training, on respiratory functions, respiratory muscle strength, exercise capacity, perceived dyspnea intensity and health-related quality of life in patients with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD). Method: Demographic and clinical information of 30 patients with moderate-to-severe COPD included in the study were recorded. Respiratory function test, maximum inspiratory (MIP) and expiratory (MEP) pressures, six-minute walk test (6MWT), modified Medical Research Council (mMRC) dyspnea scale, Saint George Respiratory Questionnaire (SGRQ) and Short Form-36 Health Study scale (SF-36) was evaluated. Pulmonary rehabilitation (PR) program, 3 days a week for 8 weeks, was applied to the patients who were randomly divided into two groups. Control Group; PR program and inspiratory muscle training (IMT), Study Group; In addition to the control group, a protocol for warming up the inspiratory muscles was applied before IMT sessions. Results: The groups were similar in demographic and clinical terms(p>0.05). Significant increases in FEV1%, FVC%, PEF%, MIP, 6MWT distance and sub-parameters of health-related quality of life (HRQOL) with significant decrease in mMRC score were found in both groups (p<0.05). Increase in FEV1% (p=0.006), PEF% (p=0.002), MIP (p=0.001), 6MWT distance (p=0.001) and HRQOL values were statistically higher in the study group (p<0.05). Conclusion: Although inspiratory muscle training in addition to exercise training in moderate-severe COPD patients improves respiratory functions, respiratory muscle strength, exercise capacity, perceived dyspnea severity and health-related quality of life; warming-up the inspiratory muscles before inspiratory muscle training further increases these gains.