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Background: Incorrect inhalation technique (IT) is an important issue for chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) patients and healthcare professionals. Studies in which counseling is carried out with healthcare professionals beforehand so that they can properly educate their patients are required. The objective of the present trial is to assess the improvement in the performance of the IT in subjects with COPD and prescribed inhaled therapy after the implementation of an educational intervention conducted by their general practitioners. Methods: A cluster randomized clinical trial was conducted. A total of 286 COPD patients received scheduled inhalation therapy from 27 general practices in seven primary care centers. A teach-back educational intervention was implemented for both healthcare professionals and patients. The primary outcome of this study was the performance of the correct inhalation technique. It is considered a good technique if all steps in the inhalation data sheet are correctly performed. The secondary outcomes were assessed using forced spirometry, the basal dyspnea index, the Medical Research Council dyspnea scale, St George's Respiratory Questionnaire (SGRQ), and EuroQoL5D-5L for health-related quality of life. A one-year follow-up was conducted using an intention-to-treat analysis. Results: After the intervention, incorrect IT was observed in 92% of professionals and patients, with rates reaching 50% and 69.2%, respectively. The effectiveness in patients was significant, with a number needed to treat of 2.14 (95% CI 1.79-2.66). Factors related to correct IT in patients included the type of intervention, length of intervention (>25 min), good pulmonary function, age (youngest <=65, oldest >83), and less limitation of activity due to dyspnea. There was no relation with the cluster. Conclusion: This study shows the effectiveness of direct inhaler technique training provided by a trained professional on an appropriate timescale (for example, a specific consultation for medication reviews), aiming to help subjects improve their performance using the teach-back method. This could be an encouraging intervention to improve medication adherence and health promotion in people with COPD. Clinical Trial Registration: clinicaltrials.gov, identifier ISRCTN93725230.
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INTRODUCTION: Numerous studies show that patients with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) perform an incorrect inhalation technique (IT). This research aims to describe inhalation errors committed and their clinical importance, and to identify factors related to them. PATIENTS AND METHODS: A total of 995 patients were recruited in this cross-sectional, descriptive study that was conducted across 20 Andalusian Health Care Centres. The following variables were collected: socio-demographic data, quality of life, mental and cognitive status, spirometry tests, severity, number of IT devices, IT correct performance, previous instruction and clinical importance of errors. RESULTS: Of the 995 patients, 906 (91,1%) performed an incorrect IT. The most common errors showed moderate errors, which were related to low-cognitive level, low-peak expiratory flow and fewer medical consultations with the pulmonologist. Critical errors were correlated with greater severity, usage of Turbuhaler® and worse quality of life. DISCUSSION: Soaring incorrect technique rate, whose most common errors sparingly compromise the drug effectiveness. These errors are related to the way the patients perform the IT, and not to the difficulty in handling the device. This information demonstrates the relevance of training patients in a proper way.