EFFICACY OF PULMONARY REHABILITATION IN PATIENTS WITH CHRONIC OBSTRUCTIVE PULMONARY DISEASE AND OBSTRUCTIVE SLEEP APNOEA: A RANDOMIZED CONTROLLED TRIAL

Objective: To evaluate the efficacy of pulmonary rehabilitation in the outcomes of patients with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease-obstructive sleep apnoea overlap syndrome patients who used positive airway pressure. Design: Prospective randomized controlled single- blind trial.Patients: A total of 79 patients with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease-obstructive sleep apnoea overlap syndrome were randomly assigned to either the intervention group (n = 40) or control group (n = 39). Methods: All patients consistently adhered to posi-tive airway pressure therapy every night from enrolment in the study, while intervention group patients received additional moderate-intensity aerobic exercise for 20 weeks. Pre- and post-inter-vention measurements included the 6-Minute Walk Test, Barthel Index, body mass index, fat mass, free fat mass, forced expiratory volume in 1 s (FEV1), FEV1%predicted, modified Medical Research Coun-cil, and polysomnography parameters.Results: After 20 weeks, the intervention group exhibited statistically significant improvements in 6MWD, Barthel Index, body mass index, fat mass, and modified Medical Research Council compared with control group (all p < 0.01). In addition, the intervention group showed a significantly lower percentage of total sleep time with oxygen satura-tion < 90% (p= 0.013) and higher lowest noctur-nal oxygen saturation (p= 0.008) than the control group. However, there was no significant difference in FEV1 %predicted between the 2 groups. Conclusion: Pulmonary rehabilitation incorporating moderate-intensity aerobic exercise could improve physical endurance and motor abilities in individu-als with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease-obstructive sleep apnoea overlap syndrome, while also improving anamnestic dyspnoea, body compo-sition, and sleep-disordered breathing.