Abdominal Binding: a Novel Intervention to Relieve Dyspnea and Improve Exercise Tolerance in Patients With Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease?

Conventional approaches to relieve dyspnea (respiratory discomfort) in chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) have focused on improving respiratory motor drive (e.g., hyperoxia) and/or dynamic respiratory mechanics (e.g., bronchodilators). Although these approaches yield meaningful symptom improvements there remains many COPD patients incapacitated by dyspnea. Accumulating evidence suggests that abdominal binding (AB) is a potentially novel method of improving respiratory muscle function and, by extension, dyspnea and exercise tolerance in COPD. Thus, the purpose of this randomized, cross-over study is to test the hypothesis that AB improves exertional dyspnea and exercise tolerance in symptomatic patients with COPD by improving dynamic respiratory muscle function. To this end, the investigators will examine the effects of AB on detailed assessments of baseline pulmonary function (spirometry, plethysmography), dyspnea (sensory intensity & affective responses), neural respiratory drive (diaphragm EMG), contractile respiratory muscle function (esophageal, gastric & transdiaphragmatic pressures), ventilation, breathing pattern and cardiometabolic function during symptom-limited constant load cycle exercise (75% Wmax) in 20 patients with GOLD stage II/III COPD.