PT - JOURNAL ARTICLE AU - Borg, Morten AU - Thastrup, Tue AU - Larsen, Kurt AU - Hilberg, Ole AU - Løkke, Anders TI - Free diving-based breathing techniques in COPD Rehabilitation AID - 10.1183/13993003.congress-2018.PA4152 DP - 2018 Sep 15 TA - European Respiratory Journal PG - PA4152 VI - 52 IP - suppl 62 4099 - https://publications.ersnet.org//content/52/suppl_62/PA4152.short 4100 - https://publications.ersnet.org//content/52/suppl_62/PA4152.full SO - Eur Respir J2018 Sep 15; 52 AB - Pulmonary rehabilitation is a cornerstone in enhancing exercise capacity and self-management in patients with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease. However, lenght and content of pulmonary rehabilitation vary greatly among different countries and authorities responsible for rehabiliation programmes. After completion of rehabilitation, patients often find it difficult to stay motivated and perform regular exercise. In this 6-week pilot study, nine patients with moderate to severe COPD completed a training programme consisting of free diving-based breathing techniques intended to be incorporated into daily activities. Exercise, however, was not a part of the sessions. After completion, patients significantly increased the distance walked in six minutes with 48.5 meters, a significant reduction was seen on the COPD self-efficacy scale and a significant decrease in the respiratory rate was found during the recovery period of exercise tests. Furthermore, adherence to the programme sessions was very high at 96.3% and no adverse events occurred. We believe the results are promising and encouraging a randomised trial comparing this intervention to conventional PR with focus on muscle and cardio-respiratory training. Outcomes will be the 6-minute walk test, quality of life, adherence to the programme and daily activity measurements before and after the intervention.FootnotesCite this article as: European Respiratory Journal 2018 52: Suppl. 62, PA4152.This is an ERS International Congress abstract. No full-text version is available. Further material to accompany this abstract may be available at www.ers-education.org (ERS member access only).