Effect Of Whole-body Vibration Training On Exercise And Balance Ability Of Patients With Acute Exacerbation Of Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease

Objective:To investigate whether whole-body vibration training(WBVT)is safe for inpatients with acute exacerbation of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease(AECOPD)and whether it improves exercise tolerance,quality of life,lung function,and balance in a short period,and provides a new nursing intervention for patients hospitalized with AECOPD.Methods:This study was a randomized controlled trial in which 46 study subjects were selected from AECOPD patients admitted to the Department of Respiratory and Critical Care Medicine of a grade 3 and first-class hospital in Jilin Province from September 2021 to September 2022 according to the inclusion and exclusion criteria,and were divided into WBVT and control groups by the random number table method.The control group received conventional treatment and nursing interventions,and the WBVT group was supplemented with WBVT based on the control group.The intervention period of this study was one week,and the subjects in both groups were evaluated on the admission and discharge days,respectively.The primary outcome indicators were the six-minute walking distance(6MWD),the Berg balance scale,the five sit-to-stand tests,and the one-leg stand test.Secondary outcome indicators were FEV1,FEV1/FVC,St.George’s Respiratory Questionnaire,and the Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease Assessment Test scale.Data were entered using Epidata3.1 and analyzed using SPSS 24.0 statistical software,and differences were considered statistically significant at P < 0.05.Results:1.A total of 46 patients,23 in each group,were included in this study.During the intervention,one person in the intervention group did not complete the intervention,and one person in the control group was transferred to intensive care.The final valid sample consisted of 44 individuals,22 in each of the intervention and control groups.Subjects in both groups had a mean age of 66.10 ± 6.132 years,severe airflow obstruction(FEV1: 38.38 ± 10.50%),and impaired motility(6-MWD: 212.10 ± 91.34m).The gender differences,age,BMI,smoking history,and FEV1 between the two groups were not statistically significant(P > 0.05)and were comparable at baseline.2.Exercise endurance(1)After one week of intervention,the six-minute walking distance improved from 213.43 ± 92.58 at baseline to 263.81 ± 93.81 in the WBVT group,with a significant difference(P< 0.001).In the control group,6MWD increased from 198.05± 75.27 to 200.48 ± 73.73 without significant improvement(t=0.984,P=0.337).The improvement of 6MWD in experimental group was significantly better than that in control group(48.38 ± 19.73 vs 2.43 ± 11.31,P < 0.001).(2)The results of the within-group comparison of the five sit-to-stand tests in both groups showed a statistically significant improvement only in the WBVT group(P < 0.001).The results of the between-group comparison showed that the five sit-tostand times of patients in the WBVT group were less than those in the control group,and the difference was statistically significant(t = 1.981,P = 0.044).3.Balance ability(1)Compared with the baseline,only the WBVT group had a significant improvement in the Berg balance scale(3.05 ± 2.09 points),the difference being statistically significant(t =-0.836,P < 0.001).The results of the comparison between groups showed that after the intervention,the difference in improvement of BBS scores was significantly higher in the test group compared to the control group,with a statistically significant difference(t=-3.591,P=0.001).(2)Compared with the baseline,the WBVT group showed significant improvement in the time of standing on one foot(P=0.001),and the control group showed no significant improvement(P > 0.05);the difference between the two groups after the intervention was significant(P=0.001),and the WBVT group was better than the control group.4.Quality of life(1)The St.George’s Respiratory Questionnaire ratings improved in both the WBVT group(P=0.008)and the control group(P=0.039),and the difference was statistically significant,while it was of greater importance in the WBVT group.There was no significant variation between the groups when comparing the two groups before and after the intervention(P > 0.05).(2)Compared to baseline scores,the COPD assessment test scale improved in both the WBVT group(P < 0.001)and the control group(P=0.007),with statistically significant differences.There was no significant difference between groups comparing the two groups after the intervention(P > 0.05).5.Lung function(1)Intra-group comparison revealed a significant improvement in FEV1 from36.7 ± 8.50 at baseline to 42.25 ± 11.18 in the WBVT group(P=0.004)and a statistically significant difference in FEV1 from 40.06 ± 12.16 at baseline to 43.0 ±11.54 in the control group(P = 0.024).There was no significant difference between groups comparing the two groups after the intervention(P > 0.05)(2)Within-group comparison revealed that FEV1/FVC improved significantly from 50.98 ± 9.52 at baseline to 55.89 ± 10.07 in the WBVT group(P < 0.001),and FEV1 improved from 52.87 ± 10.76 at baseline to 56.32 ± 8.73 in the control group(P=0.005).There was no significant difference between groups comparing the two groups after the intervention(P>0.05).Conclusion:The study demonstrated that whole-body vibration training is safe and practical to use in hospitalized patients with AECOPD and that it had a more effective therapeutic outcome than traditional rehabilitation therapy,which can effectively improve the exercise endurance,balance function,and quality of life of patients.The effect on the lung function of patient needs to be further discussed.