Effect of Pulmonary Rehabilitation on Patients with Interstitial Lung Disease

Background The treatment of Interstitial Lung Disease (ILD) typically adheres to a sequence of therapeutic protocols & according to assessment procedures. Efforts must focus on symptom alleviation, including incorporating treatments like pulmonary rehabilitation (PR) & psychosocial support to enhance case wellbeing. We aimed to determine whether PR in interstitial lung diseases cases has an advantageous influence on symptoms, exercise capacity, & quality of life (QOL). Methods This Cross-sectional analytic research was done on 60 ILD patients aged ≥ 18 years old, in both sexes. All patients were subjected to complete history taking, McGill QOL Questionnaire, Hamilton Depression Rating Scale, dyspnea assessment using the modified Medical Research Council scale, BMI, six-minute walk test, spirometry, oxygen saturation and ABG, echocardiography, and high-resolution CT chest. Participants underwent a supervised PR program (2 sessions/week for 8 weeks) following ATS/ERS guidelines, including: Health education (20 minutes) [Medication education, exacerbation review, and rehabilitation importance], exercise training [Warm-up (5–10 min), endurance training, resistance training, respiratory muscle training, and cool-down (5–10 min)], and evaluation of peripheral and respiratory muscle strength. Results Spirometry results showed a significant increase in FVC (p = 0.04), indicating improved lung capacity. Psychological well-being, as measured by the Hamilton Depression Rating Scale (HDRS), improved significantly, with scores decreasing (p = 0.004). Additionally, the MQOL total score increased markedly (p < 0.001), reflecting a significant enhancement in perceived quality of life. The categorical distribution of MQOL also showed significant improvement (p < 0.001). According to comparison between pre- and post- program, there was statistically significant difference regarding mMRC dyspnea scale Pre & Post-test, Heart rate Pre & Post-test, &O2 saturation Pre & Post-test (P = 0.001). Conclusions PR in cases with interstitial lung diseases demonstrated significant benefits by alleviating symptoms such as dyspnea, enhancing QOL, psychological wellbeing, improving exercise capacity, aerobic capacity, respiratory mechanics, & muscle strength.