Effectiveness of chest physiotherapy and pulmonary rehabilitation in patients with non-cystic fibrosis bronchiectasis: a narrative review.

Respiratory physiotherapy and rehabilitation are important therapeutic options in non-cystic fibrosis bronchiectasis (NCFB). The aims of this review of clinical trials were to evaluate the safety and the effects on physiologic and clinical outcomes of airway clearance techniques (ACTs) and rehabilitation in NCFB patients, in comparison to usual care. The search was performed on March 2018 by using PubMed and PeDro databases. 33 studies were selected. The use of ACTs for NCFB were effective in increasing sputum volume although no benefit in quality of life (QoL) or pulmonary exacerbations were observed. There were no differences in effectiveness between the several techniques used. Humidification and saline inhalation were able to aid airway clearance. Hypertonic solution (HS) was more effective than isotonic solutions (IS) in improving expectoration and sputum viscosity. Pulmonary rehabilitation (PR) was found to be associated with short term benefits in exercise capacity, dyspnea and fatigue. Exercise training seems to improve quality of life and lower exacerbation rate, but long-term data are not available. Further studies are necessary to identify the most feasible long-term outcomes such as QoL and exacerbation rate

European Respiratory Society statement on airway clearance techniques in adults with bronchiectasis

Airway clearance techniques (ACTs) are part of the main management strategy for patients with bronchiectasis. Despite being a priority for patients, accessibility, implementation and reporting of ACTs are variable in clinical settings and research studies. This European Respiratory Society statement summarises current knowledge about ACTs in adults with bronchiectasis and makes recommendations to improve the future evidence base. A task force of 14 experts and two patient representatives (10 countries) determined the scope of this statement through consensus and defined six questions. The questions were answered based on systematic searches of the literature. The statement provides a comprehensive review of the physiological rationale for ACTs in adults with bronchiectasis, and the mechanisms of action along with the advantages and disadvantages of each ACT. Evidence on ACTs in clinical practice indicates that the most frequently used techniques are active cycle of breathing techniques, positive expiratory pressure devices and gravity-assisted drainage, although there is limited evidence on the type of ACTs used in specific countries. A review of 30 randomised trials for the effectiveness of ACTs shows that these interventions increase sputum clearance during or after treatment, reduce the impact of cough and the risk of exacerbations, and improve health-related quality of life. Furthermore, strategies for reducing the risk of bias in future studies are proposed. Finally, an exploration of patients' perceptions, barriers and enablers related to this treatment is also included to facilitate implementation and adherence to ACTs.</p

Respiratory physiotherapy in patients with COVID-19 infection in acute setting: a Position Paper of the Italian Association of Respiratory Physiotherapists (ARIR)

Respiratory physiotherapy in patients with COVID-19 infection in acute setting: a Position Paper of the Italian Association of Respiratory Physiotherapists (ARIR) On February 2020, Italy, especially the northern regions, was hit by an epidemic of the new SARS-Cov-2 coronavirus that spread from China between December 2019 and January 2020. The entire healthcare system had to respond promptly in a very short time to an exponential growth of the number of subjects affected by COVID-19 (Coronavirus disease 2019) with the need of semi-intensive and intensive care units

Physiotherapist involvement in the pandemic era: a Lombardy region survey.

In February 2020 the first COVID-19 case was reported in Italy and afterwards the virus started spreading rapidly, increasing dramatically the number of infected subjects. To face the pandemic outbreak, hospitals converted wards to assure COVID-19 patients' care and adopted measures to reduce virus diffusion. The aim of this study was to determine how many physiotherapists, in the Lombardy region, worked during pandemic, whether they continued their usual practice or were employed in COVID-19 wards and in which tasks they were involved. The survey was submitted online by the national professional order. The response rate was 11.79%. During the pandemic, 648 (53.9%) respondents interrupted their services. Less than 20% of the physiotherapists that continued working were assigned to COVID-19 wards with the role of physiotherapist. Only a small proportion of respondents had advanced skills in respiratory physiotherapy. Moreover, this study showed a limited involvement of physiotherapists inside the very acute and intense settings. In conclusion, this work revealed that, during COVID-19 pandemic, in the Lombardy region a small percentage of physiotherapists was employed in COVID-19 wards, mainly in post-acute context. Even though the response rate of this survey was very low, this study highlights the need to define and underline the role of physiotherapy in acute setting during emergency

Evaluation of active neutrophil elastase in sputum of bronchiectasis and cystic fibrosis patients:A comparison among different techniques

Neutrophil elastase (NE) is a crucial marker of neutrophilic inflammation. We aimed to compare different techniques to detect active NE in sputum samples of 50 Bronchiectasis (BE) and 50 Cystic Fibrosis (CF) patients. Three methods including a ProteaseTag\uae Active NE Immunoassay (ELISA) and two enzymatic digestion assays (chromogenic -CS- and fluorogenic -FS- substrate) were compared. Results of active NE were also correlated with clinical data. The three methods provided statistically different values for NE activity in the same sputum samples in both cohorts. In the BE cohort, the highest correlations between NE activity and Bronchiectasis Severity Index (rho\u202f=\u202f0.40, P\u202f&lt;\u202f0.0001), sputum purulence (AUC\u202f=\u202f0.79), and chronic infections due to any pathogen (AUC\u202f=\u202f0.76) and P. aeruginosa (AUC\u202f=\u202f0.80) were found when NE was measured through the activity-based immunoassay. In the CF cohort, the highest correlations between NE activity and sputum quantity (rho\u202f=\u202f0.71) and FEV1% (rho\u202f=\u202f0.42, P\u202f=\u202f0.03) were observed when the FS method was used, while similar correlations with chronic P. aeruginosa infection were identified with the FS and ELISA methods. NE activity in sputum correlates with clinical variables in both diseases. However, different methods to evaluate active NE in sputum lead to significantly different results, also in terms of correlation with clinical data

European Respiratory Society statement on airway clearance techniques in adults with bronchiectasis.

Airway clearance techniques (ACTs) are part of the main management strategy for patients with bronchiectasis. Despite being a priority for patients, accessibility, implementation, and reporting of ACTs are variable in clinical settings and research studies. This European Respiratory Society statement summarises current knowledge about the ACTs in adults with bronchiectasis and makes recommendations to improve future evidence base. A task force of 14 experts and two patient representatives (10 countries) determined the scope of this statement through consensus and defined six questions. The questions were answered based on systematic searches of the literature.The statement provides a comprehensive review of the physiological rationale for ACTs in adults with bronchiectasis, and the mechanisms of action along with the advantages and disadvantages of each ACT. Evidence on the ACTs in clinical practice indicates that active cycle of breathing techniques, positive expiratory pressure devices and gravity assisted drainage technique are the most frequently used techniques, although there is limited evidence on the type of ACTs used in specific countries. A review of 30 randomised trials for the effectiveness of the ACTs shows that these interventions increase sputum clearance during or after treatment, reduce the impact of cough and the risk of exacerbations, and improve health-related quality of life. Furthermore, strategies for reducing the risk of bias in future studies are proposed. Finally, an exploration of patientś perceptions, barriers and enablers related to this treatment is also included to facilitate implementation and adherence to ACTs

Airway clearance techniques and exercise in people with bronchiectasis: two different coins.

For people with bronchiectasis, achieving long-term adherence to physiotherapy strategies is a major challenge. The regular use of airway clearance techniques (ACTs) reduces the burden of sputum-related symptoms (e.g. increased expectoration during ACT session and reduced need to expectorate/cough throughout the rest of the day), improves quality of life and may reduce exacerbations, according to a recent European Respiratory Society statement; however, there are barriers to long-term implementation (figure 1). There are traditional (e.g. positioning, manual percussions and vibrations) and contemporary strategies (e.g. breathing techniques and devices providing vibrations and/or positive or negative pressures) for airway clearance. The selection of the most appropriate ACT for an individual patient is usually determined by respiratory physiotherapists, with selection based on clinical judgement and the patient's characteristics, symptoms, understanding and preferences [...]