Yoshimura K, et al. – This paper resolved to assess the pulmonary or extrapulmonary factors related to physical inactivity among older chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) patients. Several pulmonary factors were linked to daily physical activity. However, skeletal muscle mass and dietary intake exhibited a close relationship with physical activity in these patients. Due to the physical inactivity possibly presenting as the strongest predictor of prognosis, the yielded data indicated that a comprehensive treatment strategy ought to be taken into account for older COPD patients. This would improve their extrapulmonary manifestations and pulmonary dysfunction.

Methods

• 38 older male COPD patients (aged ≥65 years) were recruited for this study.
• Skeletal muscle mass was estimated through bioelectrical impedance, and physical activity and energy intake were recorded for 2 weeks using a pedometer and diary.

Results

• Analysis of daily step counts was performed in 28 participants (mean forced expiratory volume in 1 s [%predicted; %FEV1]; 49.5%), and ranged widely.
• The mean step counts was 5166 steps/day.
• It exhibited a notable relationship with dyspnea (r = -0.46), diffusing capacity (r = 0.47), %FEV1 (r = 0.44), skeletal muscle index (r = 0.59) and total dietary intake (r = 0.47), but not with age (P = 0.14).
• A stepwise multivariate analysis illustrated that the skeletal muscle index (β = 0.50) and total dietary intake (β = 0.35) were prominent determinants of the daily step count (R² = 0.46, p < 0.01).