COPD Patients Experience Fatigue During Pulmonary Rehabilitation

Patients undergoing pulmonary rehabilitation programs may experience fatigue, according to a recent study published in the International Journal of Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease.

Defined as a distressing, complex, multidimensional sensation, fatigue is common in patients with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD). While fatigue may negatively impact functional performance and quality of life, there has been little study of its affects on participants in pulmonary rehabilitation programs.

With this study, researchers out of Canada looked to examine the emotional, behavioral, cognitive and physical dimensions of fatigue and their relationships to dyspnea, mental health, sleep and physiologic factors. A convenience sample of 42 pulmonary rehabilitation participants with COPD completed a questionnaire that measured dimensions of fatigue using several inventories and scales. Data on other clinical variables were also abstracted from pulmonary rehabilitation program health records.

Researchers found that almost all (95.3%) participants with COPD attending the pulmonary rehabilitation program experienced high levels of physical fatigue. High levels of fatigue were also reported for the dimensions of reduced activity (88.1%), reduced motivation (83.3%), mental fatigue (69.9%) and general fatigue (54.5%). Age was identified as a relative factor to fatigue dimensions of reduced activity and motivation.

Further, nearly half (42.9%) of participants reported symptoms of anxiety, while almost one quarter (21.4%) reported depressive symptoms. However, fatigue was not associated with symptoms of depression, sleep quality, gender, supplemental oxygen use, smoking status, or Medical Research Council dyspnea scores.

Researchers concluded that fatigue affects greater proportions of pulmonary rehabilitation participants than either anxiety or depression, which may impact enrollment, participation and attrition in these types of programs. They noted that further investigation of the nature, correlation and impact of fatigue on COPD patients enrolled in pulmonary rehabilitation is necessary.

Click Here to Access the Abstract from DovePress.com