Improvement of Aerobic Capacity in Cystic Fibrosis Patients With a One-year Home Training Period

Life expectancy of patients with cystic fibrosis has improved dramatically the last few years. Respiratory complications remain the main contributory factor to the morbidity and mortality associated with the disease. Exercise tolerance is reduced as the disease progresses, and peak aerobic capacity seems to be linked with survival. Regular physical activity has positive benefits, including a better body image, an improvement of pulmonary function, of exercise capacity and a possible improvement of quality of life.But because of the considerable variability of the subjects, exercise programs should be tailored to individual needs, and easy included in their cumbersome treatment routines and professional activities. In the cystic fibrosis center of Strasbourg we are able to propose to the patients a one-year physical exercise program, partly supervised with coaches, at home. Electronically braked cycle ergometer and heart rate monitoring system are at patients disposal, for one year, at home. Thus, patients can choose, during the day, the best moment to work out .Subjects will be randomised in two groups:1. a control group, where subjects are asked to continue their normal daily activities and physiotherapy regime.2. a training group, where subjects are asked to exercise three times a week. For the training group, three times a week, patients will train for 30 minutes. Heart rate will be continuously monitored and send to the medical staff every week-end . A correction of exercise intensity, if needed, is weekly proposed to maintain a maximal training efficiency, and coaches can help them, if necessary. For the two groups, quality of life will be measured with a disease-specific questionnaire (CFQ14+) (Henry, 1998, Quittner, 2000), and a generic questionnaire (SF 36) (Gee, 2002) before the program, and after 6 and 12 months. After a one year training program, and compared to the control group, we should expected an improvement in aerobic capacity and peak oxygen consumption, both associated with improved prognosis in cystic fibrosis. We also expected to observe an improvement in quality of life measurement, shorter hospital stays and fewer exacerbations. With this kind of program, we also would like to improve the degree of adherence in daily life exercise.

We hope that regular contact with the coaches or the medical staff will provide self-confidence. Thus, patients will probably be more able to choose a physical activity which will be enjoyable, shared with others (family, friends), and give real benefits in term of health status.