B108-03 Efficacy of Vibration Training on Quality of Life and Exercise Endurance in COPD Patients: A Randomized Controlled Trial

Abstract Rationale Patients with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) commonly experience reduced lower extremity muscle strength and impaired quality of life. However, participation rates in pulmonary rehabilitation programs remain low, particularly among patients with severe COPD, partly due to exertional dyspnea that diminishes patients’ willingness to engage in rehabilitation activities. Vibration training enhances muscle strength through neuromuscular reflex activation without requiring voluntary effort or causing notable cardiopulmonary stress, making it a potential adjunct or alternative to pulmonary rehabilitation. This study aimed to investigate the effects of local vibration therapy and whole-body vibration on exercise endurance and health-related quality of life in COPD patients. Methods COPD patients who had not participated in pulmonary rehabilitation programs were randomly assigned to whole-body vibration group, local lower-extremity vibration group, or control group. The intervention consisted of a 12-week training program implemented twice weekly. Outcome measures, including the Clinical COPD Questionnaire (CCQ) for health-related quality of life and the Six-Minute Walk Test (6MWT) for exercise endurance, were assessed at baseline, week 12, and week 16. Kruskal-Wallis test and generalized estimating equations (GEE) were used to compare intervention outcomes among groups. Results A total of 30 participants were enrolled in this study. Regarding exercise endurance, participants’ 6MWT distance remained stable throughout the follow-up period, with no significant differences observed between either vibration training group and the control group. In terms of health-related quality of life assessed by the CCQ, GEE analysis after adjusting for smoking status, education level, FEV1, and CCI showed that compared to the control group, the local vibration group demonstrated significantly better performance, with an average CCQ score reduction of 0.503 points (p = 0.0001). The whole-body vibration group showed a trend toward improvement but did not reach statistical significance, with an average reduction of 0.275 points (p = 0.064). When examining the time-by-group interaction, both vibration groups demonstrated significant effects at 12 weeks. The whole-body vibration group achieved an additional CCQ score reduction of 0.277 points (p = 0.022), and the local vibration group demonstrated an additional reduction of 0.310 points (p = 0.049) compared to baseline. Conclusions Vibration training, particularly local vibration therapy, significantly improved health-related quality of life in COPD patients who had not participated in pulmonary rehabilitation programs, while exercise endurance remained unchanged. Given its low cardiovascular stress and high safety profile, vibration training represents an effective complementary approach to traditional pulmonary rehabilitation for patients with limited exercise tolerance. This abstract is funded by: National Science and Technology Council, R.O.C.