• Fabio Pitta, Rafael Mesquita, Leila Donária, Isabel C H Genz, Vanessa S Probst, and Isabel Ch Genz.
• Laboratório de Pesquisa em Fisioterapia Pulmonar, Departamento de Fisioterapia, Universidade Estadual de Londrina, Londrina, Paraná, Brazil.
• Respir Care. 2013 Dec 1;58(12):2142-9.

BackgroundA more profound investigation of respiratory muscle strength during COPD exacerbation was needed, so we investigated respiratory muscle strength and related factors in patients with COPD during and after hospitalization for COPD exacerbation.MethodsIn 19 subjects hospitalized for COPD exacerbation (12 males, mean age 67 ± 11 y, median percent-of-predicted FEV(1) 26% [IQR 19-32%]) we measured lung function and respiratory and quadriceps muscle strength at admission (day 1), at discharge, and 1 month after discharge.ResultsAt admission, 68% of the subjects had inspiratory muscle dysfunction (maximum inspiratory pressure < 70% of predicted). Inspiratory muscle strength increased between day 1 (56 cm H(2)O [IQR 45-64 cm H(2)O]) and 1 month after discharge (65 cm H(2)O [IQR 51-74 cm H(2)O], P = .007). Expiratory muscle strength increased between day 1 (99 cm H(2)O [65-117 cm H(2)O]) and discharge (109 cm H(2)O [77-136 cm H(2)O], P = .005), and between day 1 and 1 month after discharge (114 cm H(2)O [90-139 cm H(2)O], P = .001). Inspiratory capacity increased between discharge (1.59 ± 0.44 L) and 1 month after discharge (1.99 ± 0.54 L, P = .02). There was no significant change in other lung function variables or quadriceps strength. At admission the inspiratory muscle dysfunction and reduction in inspiratory capacity (< 80% of predicted) correlated linearly (phi coefficient 0.62, P = .03), whereas the expiratory muscle strength correlated inversely with FEV(1) (Spearman rho -0.61, P = .005) and inspiratory capacity (Spearman rho -0.54, P = .02).ConclusionsThere was a high prevalence of inspiratory muscle dysfunction in patients hospitalized for COPD exacerbation. Inspiratory and expiratory muscle strength increased markedly during and after hospitalization. The degree of air-flow obstruction and hyperinflation were related to inspiratory and expiratory muscle strength.

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