Background

Early pulmonary rehabilitation (PR) is recommended following hospitalised exacerbations of COPD as it improves exercise capacity and health related quality of life, and reduces readmissions and mortality. However little data exist for early PR following hospitalisation for other respiratory conditions, including bronchiectasis.

Methods

In an exploratory feasibility study, eighteen individuals with a primary diagnosis of bronchiectasis, recently discharged following a hospitalised exacerbation, were referred for early PR comprising two supervised sessions per week for eight weeks. They were propensity matched 1:2 with a control group of 36 individuals with COPD undergoing the same early PR programme.

Results

Baseline characteristics are outlined in Table 1. Completion rate was similar in both groups (56 versus 61%). Improvements in exercise capacity, health related quality of life, anxiety and depression, or disease knowledge following early PR were similar between the bronchiectasis and COPD groups (Table 2).

Conclusions

Post-hospitalisation PR in individuals with bronchiectasis appears feasible with similar completion rates and improvements in clinical outcomes as observed in propensity-matched patients with COPD. Further studies, including randomised clinical trials, are needed to explore the efficacy of early PR following hospitalised exacerbations of bronchiectasis.