Traditional Chinese Exercise and Meditation Helps Senior COPD Patients

Traditional Chinese Exercise and Meditation Helps Senior COPD Patients

A new study entitled “Efficacy of Liuzijue Qigong in Individuals with Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease in Remission” published in the Journal of the American Geriatrics Society suggests that chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) patients currently in remission can benefit from regularly practicing liuzijue qigong (LQG), a routine of meditative movement and breathing patterns currently practiced by over 100 million people in China.

The single-blind study randomized 126 COPD patients, aged between 65 and 85 years old in Beijing, China, to either undergo a 45-minute LQG program, 4 times a week, along with daily walking for 30 minutes for 6 months; or just daily walking for 30 minutes. Patient baseline data was obtained and reassessed at 6 weeks and 6 months. Primary outcomes included functional capacity, and secondary outcomes involved quality of life.

The researchers found that the LQG group exhibited significant improvements in their lung function, general health, mental health, and quality of life at the end of 6 months, compared to the COPD patients in the control group at only walked for 30 minutes a day. This suggests this traditional form of meditation and exercise may be greatly beneficial in rehabilitating older COPD patients, and may be used as a favorable alternative to regular exercise routines.

To learn more about this study, visit the Journal of the American Geriatrics Society.

In an earlier report on COPD, Dr. Martin Miller from the University of Birmingham and Dr. Mark Levy from the Harrow Clinical Commissioning Group in the United Kingdom recently highlighted the risk for misdiagnosing chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD). The study was recently published in the journal BMJ and is entitled “Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease: missed diagnosis versus misdiagnosis.”

The prevalence and mortality of COPD is increasing worldwide. In the United Kingdom in particular, it has been reported that COPD might be severely underdiagnosed, especially among individuals with early disease stages who could benefit from preventive care. In this study, the team reports that the current diagnostic criteria can in fact also lead to a COPD over-diagnosis in certain groups.

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