Balance Training in Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease

Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease-COPD is the most prevalent pathology among chronic airway diseases. The average age of life has increased. Subjects over 80 years old have peculiar characteristics. Individuals with COPD have an increased risk of falling compared with healthy peers. A pulmonary rehabilitation program reduces the risk of falling as measured by gait speed. Balance training on the elderly has been shown to be effective in improving muscle strength, coordination, balance and in reducing the risk and number of falls and the fear of falling.

The enrolled subjects will complete an in-patient PR program according to enrollment.

Control: education, aerobic and strength training and callisthenic exercises. Intervention: education, aerobic and strength training as group Control and balance training. At baseline will be recorded: demographics and anthropometrics, comorbidities, drug therapy, flow/volume curve, arterial blood gases, serum hemoglobin, history of fall, exacerbations and risk of sarcopenia. Before and after the PR the following outcome measures will be assessed: balance performance, peripheral muscle strength, gait speed, health status, dyspnea, quality of life, exercise capacity, confidence with balance and perceived change. Sample size calculation was performed based on the primary endpoint of the study. We estimate a number of 50 subjects.

Inclusion criteria

• Age ≥ 80 years old,
• Diagnosis of COPD according to GOLD Guidelines (Tiffenau Index <70%) under optimized medical treatment,
• Able to perform and complete study procedures.

Exclusion criteria

• Anticholinergic Cognitive Burden score ≥3,
• Mini-Mental State Examination <22,
• Acute or chronic impairment and/or medical diseases that are likely to preclude exercise testing and PR.
• Brain lesions,
• Inner ear disease
• Visual deficit,
• Lower limb surgery in the previous 6 months.