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Cardiopulmonary exercise testing in chronic obstructive pulmonary disease: An update on its clinical value and applications
Author(s) -
Boutou Afroditi K.,
Zafeiridis Antreas,
Pitsiou Georgia,
Dipla Konstantina,
Kioumis Ioannis,
Stanopoulos Ioannis
Publication year - 2020
Publication title -
clinical physiology and functional imaging
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.608
H-Index - 67
eISSN - 1475-097X
pISSN - 1475-0961
DOI - 10.1111/cpf.12627
Subject(s) - medicine , dynamic hyperinflation , copd , exercise intolerance , intensive care medicine , physical therapy , cardiology , disease , lung volumes , heart failure , lung
Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease is a debilitating disorder, characterized by airflow limitation, exercise impairment, reduced functional capacity and significant systemic comorbidity, which complicates the course of the disease. The critical inspiratory constraint to tidal volume expansion during exercise (that may be further complicated by the presence of dynamic hyperinflation), abnormalities in oxygen transportation and gas exchange abnormalities are the major pathophysiological mechanisms of exercise intolerance in COPD patients, and thus, exercise testing has been traditionally used for the functional evaluation of these patients. Compared to various laboratory and field exercise tests, cardiopulmonary exercise testing (CPET) provides a thorough assessment of exercise physiology, involving the integrative respiratory, cardiovascular, muscle and metabolic responses to exercise. This review highlights the clinical utility of CPET in COPD patients, as it provides important information for the determination of the major factors that limit exercise among patients with several comorbidities, allows the assessment of the severity of dynamic hyperinflation, provides valuable prognostic information and can be used to evaluate the response to several therapeutic interventions.