2022 Volume 52 Issue 1 Pages 11-17
Inspiratory Muscle Training (IMT) can be defined as a technique that aims to improve the function of the respiratory muscles through specific devices. IMT has been shown to improve respiratory muscle strength and exercise endurance, and health related QOL and IMT also has been shown to reduce dyspnea on exertion. Recently, the benefits of IMT have been demonstrated in patients with heart failure (HF), respiratory management in ICU, preoperative period, and cerebrovascular disease.
The pathologic changes that occur in the lung as a consequence of chronic pulmonar y venous hypertension, pulmonary function test abnormalities, and potential mechanisms for dyspnea including airflow obstruction and/or respiratory muscle dysfunction are discussed. It is worth noting that muscle weakness appears first in the respiratory muscles and then in the musculature of the limbs, which may be considered one of the main causes of exercise intolerance. IMT seems to be a useful intervention to reduce inspiratory muscle metaboreflex in order to increase patients’ exercise tolerance under HF condition.
A systematic review was necessary to review the effects of IMT on inspiratory muscle weakness. For people with heart failure, IMT by itself, without being combined with other exercise, can improve ease of breathing, increase the amount of distance that they can walk, and improve quality of life. Inspirator y training with higher loads might be helpful for those with respiratory muscle weakness who are unable to do conventional exercise. In this review, new devices for IMT those recently developed and the working mechanism are shown. Further research should be warranted for IMT in the patients with HF and other disease than respiratory diseases.
