Elastic tape alleviates dyspnoea, improves health status in COPD

Use of the elastic tape, while having no effect on daily life physical activity (DLPA), appears to be beneficial to men with moderate to very severe chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) in terms of dyspnoea symptoms, health status, and quality of life, as shown in a study.

The study included 50 nonobese men with moderate to very severe COPD. They were randomly assigned to either the intervention group (n=25) or the control group (n=25). Men in the intervention group had the elastic tape applied on the chest wall and abdomen. The intervention lasted 14 days.

DLPA was measured using accelerometry, steps per day, and sedentary time. Dyspnoea symptoms were evaluated using transition dyspnoea index (TDI) and modified Medical Research Council (mMRC) scale. Health status was assessed using the COPD assessment test (CAT), while health-related quality of life (HRQoL) was examined using the Chronic Respiratory Disease Questionnaire (CRQ). These outcomes were evaluated at baseline and at day 21 after the intervention.

The elastic tape conferred no significant improvement in the DLPA compared with the control. Specifically, step counts remained stable among men in the intervention group but decreased among those in the control group.

However, the intervention led to a significant reduction in dyspnoea symptoms across all TDI domains (functional, task, and effort) and on the mMRC scale compared with control (p<0.01).

In addition, the men in the intervention group achieved greater improvements in CAT score, reaching minimal clinically important difference (–4.4 score, p<0.01), and in most CRQ domains after 21 days.