Feasibility and efficacy of a population-based pulmonary rehabilitation for post-tuberculosis lung disease in Bangladesh.

OBJECTIVES

The objective of this study was to evaluate the feasibility and efficacy of pulmonary rehabilitation in patients with PTLD in Bangladesh with a population-based approach.

METHODS

Prospective population-based study in Bangladesh. All patients achieving treatment success were screened with a questionnaire to identify symptoms associated with PTLD. If the screening was positive, the patient underwent further assessments, like clinical examination, spirometry, and 6-Minutes Walking Test (6MWT). Based on the screening results, patients with moderate PTLD were considered eligible for a 6-week pulmonary rehabilitation programme.

RESULTS

Two hundred and two patients met the inclusion criteria and were included in the analysis. After rehabilitation, forced expiratory volume in one second (FEV1) increased from 1.28 ± 0.47 L to 1.36 ± 0.51 L (P < 0.0001), forced vital capacity (FVC) increased from 2.00 ± 0.59 L to 2.10 ± 0.64 L (P < 0.0001), and the distance walked in 6MWT increased from 402.8 ± 109.1 m to 456.7 ± 108.6 m (P < 0.0001).

CONCLUSION

Pulmonary rehabilitation for PTLD is feasible and effective in a limited-resource setting such as Bangladesh. We suggest that the improvement of lung function in PTLD patients undergoing pulmonary rehabilitation should be assessed and included as an expected outcome.