The effect of pre-operative rehabilitation on physical function after 1 year in lung transplantation patients

抄録

【Purpose】

Available studies have shown that the effects of pre-operative rehabilitation for lung transplantation patients on physical function are beneficial in the short term；however, the effectiveness of pre-operative rehabilitation in the long term remains unclear.The purpose of this study was to verify the effect of pre-operative rehabilitation on physical function after 1 year in lung transplantation patients.

【Methods】This study was conducted from August 2008 to August 2012. The subjects were 30 patients who had undergone lung transplantation from brain dead or living donors at Kyoto University Hospital. We classified the subjects into a no-experience rehabilitation（NE）group（22 persons）and an experienced rehabilitation（E）group（8 persons）pre-operatively. We measured changes in body mass index（BMI）, knee extension strength, 6-min walking distance（6MWD）, and activities of daily living（ADL）score pre-operatively and at 3 months, 6 months, and 1 year post-operatively.The study was approved by the regional ethics committee and conducted in accordance with the Declaration of Helsinki.

【Results】There were no significant differences between the NE group and E group in BMI or ADL score at 1 year after operation. However, 6MWD and knee extension strength were higher in the E group than in the NE group.

【Discussion】The results of this study indicate that pre-operative rehabilitation is important in lung transplantation patients.