Background: Telemonitoring symptoms and physiological parameters may enable to reduce the burden of COPD on quality of life (QoL) by providing timely medical intervention at the earliest stage of deterioration, but evidence from previous studies is conflicting.

Aim: This study aimed to evaluate the effect of telemonitoring on QoL of patients with COPD.

Methods: Patients were followed for 12 months after being recruited. Impact of COPD on QoL was measured at baseline and at 12 months using St George?s Respiratory Questionnaire (SGRQ), COPD Assessment Test (CAT) and Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale (HADS). Statistical differences were assessed with paired-sample t-test. A p-value<0.05 was considered statistically significant.

Results: Ten patients were included. Mean age was 72.1 years (±8.8). Ten percent of the patients had moderate COPD, 60% had severe COPD, and 30% had very severe COPD. Six patients (60%) received long-term oxygen therapy. HADS at baseline indicated no symptoms of depression or anxiety (mean scores 6.30±4.14 and 4.50±3.03, respectively). SGRQ total score at baseline indicated poor health related QoL (mean score 48.70±9.90). CAT mean score at baseline was 20.50±7.26. The difference in mean scores from baseline to 12-months in SGRQ was 13.20 (6.65;19.76)(p=0.01), and in CAT was 3.60 (0.09;7.11)(p=0.045), corresponding to a significant difference. No changes were observed in symptoms of anxiety and depression evaluated with HADS.

Conclusion: In our study, telemonitoring of patients with COPD improved patient reported QoL, but further studies and long-term follow-up are needed to evaluate the impact of telemonitoring on QoL for patients with COPD.