Pulmonary Rehab for COPD: How It Can Improve Your Loved One’s Life

 

Introduction

People living with Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease (COPD) regularly experience symptoms like breathlessness and frequent chest infections, which can affect both physical and mental health.

Pulmonary rehab for COPD is a program that has been shown to improve everyday quality of life by reducing breathlessness, improving energy levels, and increasing the ability to exercise and stay active.

About chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD)

COPD stands for chronic obstructive pulmonary disease. It is a progressive condition, which means that it gets worse over time. As time goes by, the lungs become more severely affected, and symptoms like breathlessness get more severe.

Although COPD cannot be cured, there is plenty of effective treatment available that can slow down the rate of progression of the disease, relieve symptoms, and keep them at bay.

Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease includes conditions such as chronic bronchitis, emphysema, and some cases of chronic asthma. In the UK, it is usually caused by long-term exposure to irritants such as tobacco smoke that damage the lungs and the airways. Inhaling second-hand smoke, air pollution, or chemical fumes or dust from the environment or workplace can also contribute to the development of COPD.

What is pulmonary rehab for COPD?

Pulmonary rehabilitation (PR) is a program of educational classes and supervised exercise sessions for people with chronic breathing difficulty. It can benefit people diagnosed with COPD (chronic obstructive pulmonary disease), bronchiectasis, pulmonary hypertension, interstitial lung disease, and other chronic pulmonary disorders.

Pulmonary rehabilitation is designed to help those living with chronic lung conditions better understand their breathing, learn how to live better with their condition, and improve their strength, stamina, and endurance.

The programme helps attendees understand how their lungs work and how to do exercises that make them stronger. It is important to continue these exercises after the programme finishes. PR also teaches people about their medicines and the best way to take them.

The programmes are run by a range of expert health professionals, but physiotherapists are an essential part of the team.

How effective is pulmonary rehabilitation?

Pulmonary rehabilitation programmes are extremely effective in treating COPD.  They significantly improve life for those with COPD by reducing breathlessness, providing ways to control the disease, and improving the patient’s ability to carry out daily activities, such as washing and dressing. Better health leads to improvements in quality of life and a reduction in hospital readmissions.

90% of people who complete a PR programme report an improved quality of life.

Taking part in a Pulmonary rehabilitation programme can:

• • reduce your chance of needing hospital treatment

• • reduce the depression and anxiety that sometimes go along with COPD

• • reduce fatigue

• • increase how much you are able to exercise

• • help improve your quality of life: for example, by helping you feel more in control of your life and your illness.

These programmes can be delivered in homes or in hospitals. They often involve some group work so participants can meet others with COPD and discuss their symptoms with them.

Pulmonary rehabilitation (PR) should always complement or supplement existing medical treatment for COPD.

PR helps to tackle the emotional aspects of COPD

By helping you understand how to care better for COPD, participants can feel more in control.  These feelings of control spill over and help to tackle some of the emotional aspects of the condition, reducing stress and giving affected individuals a more positive outlook on living with a lung problem.

PR helps to tackle breathlessness relating to activity 

Individuals with breathing problems can have shortness of breath during exercise or even regular activity such as bathing or dressing.  The result is that many avoid the unpleasant symptoms by doing less activity but this can mean they become more sedentary leading to a vicious circle of avoiding activities and getting out of shape which can make the breathlessness worse.

Pulmonary rehabilitation exercise training interrupts this cycle of inactivity and helps participants get in shape and be more active with less shortness of breath.

Physiotherapists can help people with COPD in many ways

Pulmonary rehabilitation programmes are often led by physiotherapists, who can also provide other types of help to those with lung or breathing problems. If you tend to hyperventilate (breathe too quickly) or have problems clearing phlegm from your chest, a physiotherapist can show you breathing techniques to help.

Physios also help patients manage the breathlessness caused by their COPD. They can use positioning and breathing exercises, give advice on how to pace activity, and show you ways to cope.

If someone with COPD is admitted to the hospital with a breathing problem, physios play a key role in helping them clear their chest, manage their lung condition and get moving again.

Physios may also be involved in helping people with COPD with their return home from hospital after being unwell, and in managing future flare-ups of their condition.

How to help a loved one with COPD to access physiotherapy or pulmonary rehabilitation 

You can encourage your loved ones to seek help by helping them understand what different treatments involve and also what the benefits might be.

In most instances, a health professional – usually a GP or hospital specialist – will need to refer someone with COPD for physiotherapy or pulmonary rehabilitation.

Pulmonary rehabilitation is a relatively new service in some parts of the country, and so it might not be routinely offered to every patient.  Given its benefits, it is well worth encouraging your parent to discuss with their GP, practice nurse or hospital specialist whether pulmonary rehabilitation could help them. Age should never be a barrier.