ABSTRACT
Pulmonary rehabilitation increases exercise tolerance and improves general well-being of patients with chronic lung disease. As stated by the American Thoracic Society, the goal of pulmonary rehabilitation is to “return the patient to the highest possible functional capacity allowed by his pulmonary handicap and overall life situation.” Chronic lung disease progressively damages lung tissue and airways and, over a period of years, ultimately results in a depletion of ventilatory reserves. Complicating this physiologically are abnormalities in gas exchange and elevations in pulmonary vascular pressures that lead to right ventricular dysfunction. Testing exercise capacity is one of the best objective ways to measure functional physical capabilities. The physiologic response to exercise usually is obtained by performing progressive exercise on a treadmill or stationary bicycle. The exercise is performed to exhaustion or to a symptom limitation while oxygen uptake, heart rate, and ventilation are measured.
