Home-based inspiratory muscle training after an acute COPD flare

Is this trial a fit for you?

A plain-English reading of the study's rules. Only the study team can confirm whether you qualify.

What this trial studies

This randomized interventional trial compares home-based inspiratory muscle training (IMT) plus usual care versus usual care alone in patients hospitalized for at least three days with an acute COPD exacerbation. The IMT program is delivered at home using a tele-monitoring smartphone app and scheduled video contacts to guide and record training sessions. The primary outcome is all-cause hospital readmission or death within 180 days after discharge, with secondary outcomes including respiratory muscle strength, dyspnea, quality of life, and functional capacity. Key eligibility includes age ≥35, ability to consent, possession of a compatible smartphone, and fluency in French, Dutch, or English, while exclusions include prior IMT use, non-COPD primary lung disease, limited life expectancy, or inability to perform the intervention.

Why it matters

Who can join: the full rules

Inclusion Criteria:

* Patients admitted to the hospital ≥3 days for AECOPD
* Read and speak French, Dutch or English
* Age ≥ 35 years
* Able to provide informed consent
* Possessing a smartphone, compatible with the tele-monitoring app and able to perform video meetings.

Exclusion Criteria:

* Patients already performing IMT at time of inclusion
* Patients with estimated \<90 days life expectancy
* Non-COPD pulmonary disease as primary diagnosis
* Active malignancy
* Inability to perform IMT or response to questionnaires (e.g., neurological/cognitive impairment)
* Acute instable cardiac arrythmia or ischemia
* Acute pneumothorax
* Planned lung volume reduction procedure \<180days
* Waitlisted for lung transplantation
* Patients admitted to an in-hospital rehabilitation ward
* Patients included in other interventional trial related to COPD that would interfere with our trial outcomes.

Where it's running

• Azorg
  Aalst, Belgium Recruiting
• Campus Joseph Bracops, Hôpitaux Iris Sud
  Anderlecht, Belgium Recruiting
• Centre Hospitalier Universitaire Saint-Pierre
  Brussels, Belgium Recruiting
• Grand Hopial de Charleroi
  Charleroi, Belgium Recruiting
• AZ Maria Middelares
  Ghent, Belgium Recruiting
• Universitair Ziekenhuis Gent
  Ghent, Belgium Recruiting

Study contacts

• Principal investigator: Daniel Langer, PhD — KU Leuven
• Study coordinator: Marine Van Hollebeke, PhD
• Email: marine.vanhollebeke@kuleuven.be
• Phone: 0032498606820

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How to take part

1. Review the eligibility criteria above with your treating physician.
2. Check the official listing on ClinicalTrials.gov for the latest contact details and recruitment status.
3. Contact the study coordinator or principal investigator to ask for pre-screening. Pre-screening is free and never obligates you to enroll.