ABSTRACT
The main treatment goals for chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) are the reduction of its symptoms and future risks. The addition of the traditional herbal medicine Hochuekkito (TJ-41) treatment to pulmonary rehabilitation (PR) has been reported to improve dyspnea and health-related quality of life (HRQOL) in patients with COPD. However, the reason for this improvement is not sufficiently understood. The purpose of the present study was to investigate whether the addition of TJ-41 treatment to PR improves symptoms of apathy, dyspnea, and HRQOL and increases physical activity among apathetic patients with COPD. Apathetic patients with COPD were randomly assigned to receive low-intensity exercise with (TJ-41 group) or without (control group) TJ-41 treatment for 12 weeks. A total of 29.9% of COPD patients had apathetic symptoms without severe depression. After the 12-week treatment, Apathy Scale, Patient Health Questionnaire-9, visual analog scale for dyspnea, and COPD assessment test energy scores decreased significantly in the TJ-41 group (p < 0.05), but not in the control group. Additionally, the total number of steps taken was significantly higher in the TJ-41 group than in the control group. TJ-41 combined with PR may benefit apathetic patients with COPD with respect to apathy, dyspnea, HRQOL, and physical activity, but larger randomized placebo-controlled trials are required to validate the findings because of the small sample size and lack of placebo controls in this study.
ABSTRACT
Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) has significant systemic effects, such as weight loss, which affects exercise capacity, health-related quality of life (HRQOL) and survival. The traditional herbal medicine, Hochuekkito (TJ-41), improves the nutritional status and decreases systemic inflammation in patients with COPD. However, to date, the additive effect of TJ-41 on pulmonary rehabilitation (PR) in patients with COPD has not been researched comprehensively. The purpose of the present study was to investigate the efficacy and safety of adding TJ-41 to PR for patients with COPD. Thirty-three malnourished patients with COPD were randomly assigned to receive low-intensity exercise with (TJ-41 group) or without (control group) TJ-41 treatment for 12 weeks. The primary outcome was the change in the 6-min walk distance (6MWD). Secondary outcomes included changes in the body composition, peripheral muscle strength, modified Medical Research Council dyspnea score, visual analog scale (VAS) score for dyspnea, VAS score for fatigue and COPD assessment test (CAT) score. After the 12-week treatment, body weight and percent ideal body weight were significantly increased in the TJ-41 group (P<0.05), but not in the control group. After the 12-week treatment, the modified Medical Research Council dyspnea score, VAS score for dyspnea, VAS score for fatigue and total CAT score decreased significantly in the TJ-41 group (all P<0.05), but not in the control group. There were no significant differences in the 6MWD and peripheral muscle strength between baseline and after 12 weeks of treatment in either group. No adverse effects were noted with the use of TJ-41. It was concluded that the addition of TJ-41 to PR may benefit malnourished patients with COPD with respect to dyspnea and HRQOL.
