BackgroundLimited mobility is a risk factor for developing chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD)-related disabilities. Little is known about the validity of the Short Physical Performance Battery (SPPB) for identifying mobility limitations in patients with COPD.ObjectiveTo determine the clinical validity of the SPPB summary score and its three components (standing balance, 4-meter gait speed, and five-repetition sit-to-stand) for identifying mobility limitations in patients with COPD.MethodsThis cross-sectional study included 137 patients with COPD, recruited from a hospital in Spain. Muscle strength tests and SPPB were measured; then, patients were surveyed for self-reported mobility limitations. The validity of SPPB scores was analyzed by developing receiver operating characteristic curves to analyze the sensitivity and specificity for identifying patients with mobility limitations; by examining group differences in SPPB scores across categories of mobility activities; and by correlating SPPB scores to strength tests.ResultsOnly the SPPB summary score and the five-repetition sit-to-stand components showed good discriminative capabilities; both showed areas under the receiver operating characteristic curves greater than 0.7. Patients with limitations had significantly lower SPPB scores than patients without limitations in nine different mobility activities. SPPB scores were moderately correlated with the quadriceps test (r>0.40), and less correlated with the handgrip test (r<0.30), which reinforced convergent and divergent validities. A SPPB summary score cutoff of 10 provided the best accuracy for identifying mobility limitations.ConclusionThis study provided evidence for the validity of the SPPB summary score and the five-repetition sit-to-stand test for assessing mobility in patients with COPD. These tests also showed potential as a screening test for identifying patients with COPD that have mobility limitations.

Background:Readmission after hospital discharge is common in patients with acute exacerbations (AE) of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD). Although frailty predicts hospital readmission in patients with chronic nonpulmonary diseases, no multidimensional frailty measures have been validated to stratify the risk for patients with COPD.Aim:The aim of this study was to explore multidimensional frailty as a potential risk factor for readmission due to a new exacerbation episode during the 90 days after hospitalization for AE-COPD and to test whether frailty could improve the identification of patients at high risk of readmission. We hypothesized that patients with moderate-to-severe frailty would be at greater risk for readmission within that period of follow up. A secondary aim was to test whether frailty could improve the accuracy with which to discriminate patients with a high risk of readmission. Our investigation was part of a wider study protocol with additional aims on the same study population.Methods:Frailty, demographics, and disease-related factors were measured prospectively in 102 patients during hospitalization for AE-COPD. Some of the baseline data reported were collected as part of a previously study. Readmission data were obtained on the basis of the discharge summary from patients’ electronic files by a researcher blinded to the measurements made in the previous hospitalization. The association between frailty and readmission was assessed using bivariate analyses and multivariate logistic regression models. Whether frailty better identifies patients at high risk for readmission was evaluated by area under the receiver operator curve (AUC).Results:Severely frail patients were much more likely to be readmitted than nonfrail patients (45% versus 18%). After adjusting for age and relevant disease-related factors in a final multivariate model, severe frailty remained an independent risk factor for 90-day readmission (odds ratio = 5.19; 95% confidence interval: 1.26–21.50). Age, number of hospitalizations for exacerbations in the previous year and length of stay were also significant in this model. Additionally, frailty improved the predictive accuracy of readmission by improving the AUC.Conclusions:Multidimensional frailty predicts the risk of early hospital readmission in patients hospitalized for AE-COPD. Frailty improved the accuracy of discriminating patients at high risk for readmission. Identifying patients with frailty for targeted interventions may reduce early readmission rates.

BackgroundThe physical frailty status affects the health status of patients with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD). The objective was to determine if the individual physical frailty characteristics have a differential impact on the CAT score.MethodsThis observational study included 137 patients with stable COPD. Physical frailty was measured with unintentional weight loss, low physical activity, exhaustion, slow walking speed and low grip strength and health status assessed with the COPD Assessment test (CAT). The following variables were evaluated as potential determinants of CAT: sex, age, body mass index, smoking, dyspnea, exacerbations, comorbidities, %FEV1, %FVC, anxiety and depression.ResultsThe prevalence of characteristics for individual frailty was as follows: low grip strength, 60.6%; low physical activity, 27.0%; exhaustion, 19.7%; slow walking speed, 9.5%; and unintentional weight loss, 7.3%. A total of 17.5% of the patients were non-frail, 73.7% were pre-frail and only 8.7% were frail. One of the five frailty characteristics, exhaustion (adjusted β coefficient 5.12 [standard error = 1.27], p = 0.001) was an independent determinant of CAT score in the final regression model which was adjusted by other independent determinants of CAT (dyspnea, exacerbations and anxiety).ConclusionsDue to the fact that exhaustion is a frequent and relevant psychological symptom on CAT score of patients with COPD, interventions should reduce that stress. Future research should explore how exhaustion persists or remits over time.

BackgroundThe Short Physical Performance Battery (SPPB) is an assessment tool with good prognostic value in COPD. It includes the following: standing balance, 4 m gait speed test (4MGS), and the timed five-repetition sit-to-stand test (5STS). The specific differences in determinants between these three tasks have not been adequately characterized in COPD patients. We aimed to identify health-related, functional, and psychological determinants of each SPPB test.MethodsWe conducted a cross-sectional analysis of 137 patients with stable COPD. Patients performed the SPPB, quadriceps muscle strength (QMS), exercise tolerance test (6-min walk test [6MWT]), and pulmonary function; and health-related and psychological factors, physical activity, the COPD assessment test (CAT), body mass index, age, and depression were assessed.ResultsSeparate multivariable regression models predicting the 4MGS, 5STS, and balance test results described 31%, 39.1%, and 12.1% of the variance for each test, respectively. QMS was negatively associated with all three tests. The 6MWT was negatively associated with the 4MGS and 5STS. Depression and age were positively associated with 4MGS scores, whereas CAT and age were positively associated with 5STS scores.ConclusionThe three SPPB tests did not provide equivalent information regarding a COPD patient’s status. The 5STS was associated with health status factors, while the 4MGS was associated with psychological factors.

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