Fax +41 61 306 12 34 E-Mail karger@karger.ch www.karger.com Clinical Investigations Respiration 2011;81:302–310 DOI: 10.1159/000315142 Improvements in Symptoms and Quality of Life following Exercise Training in Older Adults with Moderate/Severe Persistent Asthma Sian Turner   a, b Peter Eastwood   a, c, e Angus Cook   a, d Sue Jenkins   a, b, f a  School of Physiotherapy and Curtin Health Innovation Research Institute, Curtin University of Technology, b  Lung Institute of Western Australia and Centre for Asthma, Allergy and Respiratory Research, and Schools of c  Anatomy and Human Biology, and d  Population Health, University of Western Australia, and Departments of e  Pulmonary Physiology and f  Physiotherapy, Sir Charles Gairdner Hospital, Perth, W.A., Australia 0.57 points per item, p = 0.005) and AQLQ activity limitation domain (0.43, p = 0.04, and 0.55 points per item, p = 0.04). 6MWD increased (36 8 37 m, p ! 0.01) in the exercise group immediately following training and remained elevated (34 8 45 m, p ! 0.01) at the 3-month follow-up. The magnitude of change in 6MWD between groups was not significant, de- spite no change in the control group. Conclusions: Super- vised exercise training improves symptoms and QOL in adults with FAOA. Copyright © 2010 S. Karger AG, Basel Introduction Asthma is one of the most common chronic condi- tions worldwide [1]. In adults, consequences of asthma include dyspnoea, wheezing and chest tightness on exer- tion and in response to other triggers, reduced exercise capacity and co-morbid conditions such as depression, anxiety and impaired quality of life (QOL) [2–4]. The dis- ability associated with asthma has been reported to be greater in individuals with more severe disease, in those who are older and in those who have poorer control of their asthma [5]. A negative attitude to exercise is com- mon due to a fear of symptoms occurring during or after exercise and to a lack of specific advice about exercise from health professionals. Such attitudes often lead to a Key Words Asthma  Exercise training  Rehabilitation  Quality of life  Exercise tests Abstract Background: Some individuals with moderate/severe per- sistent asthma develop irreversible airway obstruction. These individuals present with dyspnoea, exercise intoler- ance and impaired quality of life (QOL), all of which could potentially be alleviated with exercise training. Objective: To investigate whether exercise training improves functional exercise capacity and QOL in middle-aged and older adults with fixed airway obstruction asthma (FAOA). Methods: 35 subjects aged 67.8 8 10.6 years, with FEV 1 59 8 16% of pre- dicted, were randomised to a 6-week ‘intervention’ period of supervised exercise training (n = 20) or usual care (n = 15). This period was preceded by a 3-week run-in period during which asthma control was assessed weekly. Functional exer- cise capacity (6-min walk distance, 6MWD) and QOL (Asthma QOL Questionnaire, AQLQ) were measured before, immedi- ately following and 3 months after the intervention period. Results: 34 subjects (exercise group, n = 19, and control group, n = 15) completed the intervention period. Relative to the control group, the exercise group had greater improve- ments immediately following and 3 months after the inter- vention in the AQLQ symptom domain (0.61, p = 0.001, and Received: September 30, 2009 Accepted after revision: January 19, 2010 Published online: May 22, 2010 Sue Jenkins Curtin University of Technology School of Physiotherapy, GPO Box U1987 Bentley, W.A. 6845 (Australia) Tel. +61 8 9266 3639, Fax +61 8 9266 3699, E-Mail S.Jenkins  @  curtin.edu.au © 2010 S. Karger AG, Basel 0025–7931/11/0814–0302$38.00/0 Accessible online at: www.karger.com/res