Pulmonary rehabilitation in interstitial lung diseases.

PURPOSE OF REVIEW: This review will provide an overview of the components and current evidence to support pulmonary rehabilitation in patients with interstitial lung diseases (ILD), focusing on the latest findings in enhancing quality of life and functional capacity using exercise training and education.

RECENT FINDINGS: Recent literature demonstrates a longer duration of pulmonary rehabilitation results in sustained improvements in functional capacity and quality of life in patients with ILD. Educational components tailored to ILD provide added value to supervised exercise training. Enhancing exercise training with hyperoxia merits further study and other modalities such as pursed-lip breathing have been shown to be counterproductive.

SUMMARY: Recent evidence continues to support the use of tailored pulmonary rehabilitation programs in patients with ILD. Areas which require further investigation include identifying optimal exercise training regimens, educational topics, and breathing techniques that are specifically designed for ILD.