The Effect of Pulmonary Rehabilitation Using the Elastic Band Practice Program to Enhance Pulmonary Function among Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease Patients

Abstract

Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease patients often have dyspnea and exacerbation.
When patients have more exacerbations, their pulmonary function will decrease. The
purpose of this quasi-experimental design research was to study the effect of pulmonary
rehabilitation using the elastic band practice program assessed by the COPD self-efficacy
scale (CSES) and pulmonary function among 40 COPD patients from the Thammasat
Hospital. Patients were divided into 2 groups, with 20 patients in each group. The
experimental group received the program while the control group received routine care
only. The CSES was used to assess participants at pre-test, 4, and 8 weeks after the
program. Spiro metric assessment was also used at pre- and post-test. Data were analyzed
by percentage, arithmetic mean, standard deviation; Chi-square, Fisher’s exact test,
Repeated measures ANOVA, Paired t-test, and Independent t-test.
After program implementation, the experimental group had significantly improved
mean scores on the COPD self-efficacy scale as compared to the control group (p < 0.05),
while the pulmonary functions (FEV1 and FVC) were not significantly different between the
experimental group and control group (p < 0.001). However, the mean scores of FEV1 and
FVC of the experimental group did increase more than in the control group. Results
indicate the program had some positive effect and therefore should be continued for
COPD patients.