Abstract
Aims: To examine the impact of respiratory and thoracic muscle strengthening exercises on kyphosis, chest expansion, dyspnoea and peak expiratory flow rate in elderly people with osteoporosis.
Methods: Twenty elderly patients with mild osteoporosis-related kyphosis and respiratory impairment participated in this study. Participants undertook breathing and thoracic extension exercises three times a week for 6 weeks, in which they performed 40 minutes of resistive diaphragmatic exercise with 50% of their one repetition maximum (1RM).
Results: Participants in this study demonstrated improvements in: i) dyspnoea, with a reduction in mean score of 8 to 5 on a 10-point dyspnoea grading scale; ii) chest expansion, with a mean increase of 2.01 inches (95% CI 1.59-2.42); iii) peak expiratory flow rate, with a mean increase of 82.50 litre/minute (95% CI 67.25-97.75); iv) range of motion of the spine, with a mean increase of 1.66 inches (95% CI 1.39-1.93).
Conclusions: A combination of breathing and thoracic muscle strengthening exercises improves respiratory function and dyspnoea relief. Thus, strengthening exercise programmes should be a part of the rehabilitation protocol for improving the respiratory function of elderly patients with osteoporosis.