Exercise-Based Pulmonary Rehabilitation for Severe and Very Severe COPD: What a Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis Found

Physical therapists and physical therapist assistants who work with people who have advanced chronic obstructive pulmonary disease — in outpatient pulmonary rehabilitation, acute care, home health or skilled nursing — and who want a plain-language account of what the pooled trial evidence shows at the severe and very severe end of the disease.

Physical therapists and physical therapist assistants. The material is also relevant to occupational therapists, respiratory therapists and rehabilitation managers involved in pulmonary rehabilitation programming.

Intended audience

Physical Therapy

Level

Introductory

Delivery format

Online, asynchronous, self-paced course: interactive reading with audio or video, and a scored post-test.

Based on

This course reports the findings of a single published systematic review and meta-analysis. All statements, numbers and conclusions presented here trace to that source.

He W, Wang J, Feng Z, Li J, Xie Y. Effects of exercise-based pulmonary rehabilitation on severe/very severe COPD: a systematic review and meta-analysis. Ther Adv Respir Dis. 2023;17:17534666231162250. DOI: 10.1177/17534666231162250. PMID: 36946384. PMCID: PMC10037727.

Review protocol prospectively registered with PROSPERO (No. CRD42022294085).

A note on scope

This is an evidence-appraisal course, not a technique course. It describes what the review’s authors searched for, what they pooled, what they found and how confident they were. It does not provide exercise prescription instruction, and it does not extend the findings beyond the population the review studied.

After completing this course, you will be able to:

1. Describe the population, intervention and comparison conditions examined in this systematic review of exercise-based pulmonary rehabilitation for severe and very severe COPD.
2. State the direction of the pooled findings the authors reported for walking distance, breathlessness and health-related quality of life.
3. Explain the limitations and certainty ratings the authors attached to their own conclusions.

1. Start Here: How This Course Works
2. Podcast: Exercise Training in Advanced COPD — What the Pooled Trials Showed (about nine minutes)
3. Why Severe and Very Severe COPD Was the Open Question
4. How the Reviewers Gathered and Pooled the Trials
5. What Changed: Walking Distance, Breathlessness and Quality of Life
6. How Certain the Evidence Is, and Where It Falls Short
7. What the Authors Concluded and How It Might Inform Practice
8. Key Takeaways
9. Post-Test and Course Evaluation

Quinn Millington, PT, DPT, ECS is the instructor of record: the licensed clinician who reviewed this course and signed off on it. The name and credentials print on the certificate.

Disclosures. This course was developed by The ConEd Solution, which has a financial interest in its sale. No outside funding or sponsorship was received. The instructor of record has no affiliation with the authors of the source publication or their institutions.

This course awards 0.5 contact hours (30 min). How you earn them:

1. Complete the course. Every lesson, in order.
2. Pass the post-test. Score 80% or higher. Retakes are allowed.
3. Complete the evaluation. A short form rating each learning objective and the course.
4. Download your certificate. It is issued on completion and stays available in My Account.

The episode time is its measured length. Reading, post-test and evaluation times are estimates.

This course is designed to satisfy the quality requirements state boards set for continuing education. Requirements vary by state, and confirming that a course fits your renewal is up to you. Each state’s own acceptance statement is in the credit panel on this page.

1. This course reports the findings of a single published systematic review and meta-analysis. All statements, numbers and conclusions presented here trace to that source.
2. He W, Wang J, Feng Z, Li J, Xie Y. Effects of exercise-based pulmonary rehabilitation on severe/very severe COPD: a systematic review and meta-analysis. Ther Adv Respir Dis. 2023;17:17534666231162250. DOI: 10.1177/17534666231162250. PMID: 36946384. PMCID: PMC10037727.
3. Review protocol prospectively registered with PROSPERO (No. CRD42022294085).
4. A note on scope
5. This is an evidence-appraisal course, not a technique course. It describes what the review's authors searched for, what they pooled, what they found and how confident they were. It does not provide exercise prescription instruction, and it does not extend the findings beyond the population the review studied.