Exercise Rehabilitation and Chronic Respiratory Diseases: Effects, Mechanisms, and Therapeutic Benefits

Abstract

Ting Xiong,1 Xinyue Bai,1 Xingyi Wei,1 Lezheng Wang,1 Fei Li,2 Hui Shi,3 Yue Shi2 1School of Exercise and Health, Shanghai University of Sport, Shanghai, 200438, People’s Republic of China; 2School of Athletic Performance, Shanghai University of Sport, Shanghai, 200438, People’s Republic of China; 3Department of Rheumatology and Immunology, Ruijin Hospital, Shanghai Jiao Tong University School of Medicine, Shanghai, 200025, People’s Republic of ChinaCorrespondence: Yue Shi, School of Athletic Performance, Shanghai University of Sport, No. 399, Changhai Road, Shanghai, 200438, People’s Republic of China, Tel [phone], Fax [phone], Email [email protected]: Chronic respiratory diseases (CRD), is a group of disorders, primarily chronic obstructive pulmonary disease and asthma, which are characterized by high prevalence and disability, recurrent acute exacerbations, and multiple comorbidities, resulting in exercise limitations and reduced health-related quality of life. Exercise training, an important tool in pulmonary rehabilitation, reduces adverse symptoms in patients by relieving respiratory limitations, increasing gas exchange, increasing central and peripheral hemodynamic forces, and enhancing skeletal muscle function. Aerobic, resistance, and high-intensity intermittent exercises, and other emerging forms such as aquatic exercise and Tai Chi effectively improve exercise capacity, physical fitness, and pulmonary function in patients with CRD. The underlying mechanisms include enhancement of the body’s immune response, better control of the inflammatory response, and acceleration of the interaction between the vagus and sympathetic nerves to improve gas exchange. Here, we reviewed the new evidence of benefits and mechanisms of exercise intervention in the pulmonary rehabilitation of patients with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, bronchial asthma, bronchiectasis, interstitial lung disease, and lung cancer.Keywors: chronic respiratory disease, exercise training, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, asthma, interstitial lung disease, bronchiectasis, lung cancer

Keywords

• chronic respiratory disease
• exercise training
• chronic obstructive pulmonary disease
• asthma
• interstitial lung disease
• bronchiectasis
• lung cancer