A comparison of muscle strength and endurance, exercise capacity, fatigue perception and quality of life in patients with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease and healthy subjects: a cross-sectional study

Abstract Background Modifiable cardiovascular risk factors (MCRFs), such as those related to aerobic capacity, muscle strength, physical activity, and body composition, have been poorly studied in Takayasu arteritis (TAK). Therefore, the aim of the study was to investigate MCRFs and their relationships with disease status and comorbidities among patients with TAK. Methods A multicenter cross-sectional study was conducted between 2019 and 2020, in which 20 adult women with TAK were compared with 16 healthy controls matched by gender, age, and body mass index. The following parameters were analyzed: aerobic capacity by cardiopulmonary test; muscle function by timed-stands test, timed up-and-go test, and handgrip test; muscle strength by one-repetition maximum test and handgrip test; body composition by densitometry; physical activity and metabolic equivalent by IPAQ, quality of life by HAQ and SF-36; disease activity by ITAS2010 and NIH score; and presence of comorbidities. Results Patients with TAK had a mean age of 41.5 (38.0–46.3) years, disease duration of 16.0 (9.5–20.0) years, and a mean BMI of 27.7±4.5 kg/m2. Three out of the 20 patients with TAK had active disease. Regarding comorbidities, 16 patients had systemic arterial hypertension, 11 had dyslipidemia, and two had type 2 diabetes mellitus, while the control group had no comorbidities. TAK had a significant reduction in aerobic capacity (absolute and relative VO2 peak), muscle strength in the lower limbs, increased visceral adipose tissue, waist-to-hip ratio, reduced walking capacity, decreased weekly metabolic equivalent, and quality of life (P< 0.05) as compared to controls. However, there were no correlations between these MCRFs parameters and disease activity. Conclusions TAK show impairment in MCRFs; therefore, strategies able to improve MCRF should be considered in this disease.

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Clinical and Quality of Life Differences in Patients with COPD With and Without a Background of Hospitalization in the Last Year

Current Respiratory Medicine Reviews ◽

10.2174/1573398x17666210209111111 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 16 (4) ◽

pp. 228-233

Author(s):

Jhonatan Betancourt-Peña ◽

Juan Carlos Ávila-Valencia ◽

Jorge Karim Assis ◽

David Alejandro Escobar-Vidal

Keyword(s):

Quality Of Life ◽

Survival Rates ◽

Cross Sectional Study ◽

Chronic Obstructive ◽

Upward Trend ◽

Cross Sectional ◽

Obstructive Pulmonary Disease ◽

Lower Socioeconomic ◽

Causes Of Mortality

Introduction: Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease (COPD) is the fourth leading cause of death worldwide. An upward trend is estimated by 2030. One of the causes of mortality is the exacerbations of symptoms that result in hospitalizations. These hospitalizations reduce the quality of life, limit performance in daily life, and increase the costs for the health system and the patient. Objective: This study aimed to determine the differences between hospitalized and non-hospitalized patients with a medical diagnosis of COPD, considering some sociodemographic and clinical variables, and survival rates. Methods: A cross-sectional study was conducted, which included patients diagnosed with COPD who initiated pulmonary rehabilitation (PR) from January to September 2018. The patients were divided into two groups: patients with one or more exacerbations that led to the hospitalization (COPD-H) and patients without hospitalizations in the last year (COPD-NH). Results: There were 128 participants (78 males and 50 females), with a mean age of 71.10±(9.34) in the COPD-H group and 71.30±(8.91) in the COPD-NH group. When comparing both groups, COPD-NH had a higher socioeconomic status (p=0.041), reporting a higher FEV1 44.71± (14.97), p=0.047, and comorbidities according to the COTE index (p<0.001). Conclusion: The patients with the highest number of hospitalizations belonged to a lower socioeconomic stratum and had a higher number of comorbidities. Therefore, it is necessary to identify these factors at the beginning of PR.

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