SYSTEMATIC REVIEW article
Front. Med.
Sec. Pulmonary Medicine
Volume 12 - 2025 | doi: 10.3389/fmed.2025.1640084
A meta-analysis of the effects of long-term oxygen therapy combined with exercise rehabilitation on exercise capacity, cardiopulmonary function, and quality of life in patients with COPD
Provisionally accepted
- 1School of Pharmacy, Jiangxi University of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Nanchang, China
- 2Department of Geriatrics and Respiratory Medicine, Affiliated Hospital of Inner Mongolia Minzu University, Tongliao, China
- 3Department of Geriatrics and Respiratory Medicine, Affiliated Hospital of Inner Mongolia Minzu University, Inner Mongolia Minzu University, Tiaoliao, China
- 4Clinical College, Inner Mongolia Minzu University, Tongliao, China
- 5National Pharmaceutical Engineering Center for Solid Preparation of Chinese Herbal Medicine, Jiangxi University of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Nanchang, China
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Objective: To assess the effectiveness of LTOT combined with exercise rehabilitation versus exercise rehabilitation alone in improving exercise capacity, cardiopulmonary function, and quality of life in COPD patients. Methods: A comprehensive literature search was conducted in CBM, Wanfang, CNKI, Cochrane Library, EMBASE, ScienceDirect, and PubMed for studies published from January 2010 to the present. Controlled clinical trials comparing oxygen therapy and/or exercise rehabilitation in COPD patients were included. Two independent reviewers extracted data and assessed risk of bias using the Cochrane Handbook (version 5.3). Meta-analysis was performed using RevMan 5.3. Results: Nine studies (N=703) met inclusion criteria. Compared with the control group, the combined LTOT and exercise group showed significant improvements in 6-minute walk distance (6MWD), forced expiratory volume in 1 second (FEV₁), and FEV₁/FVC ratio (P < 0.05). PaO₂ levels tended to be higher but showed substantial heterogeneity. No significant differences were observed in blood oxygen saturation, heart rate, or PaCO₂. Quality of life significantly improved in the combined therapy group. Conclusion: LTOT combined with exercise rehabilitation is more effective than exercise alone in improving exercise capacity, pulmonary function, and quality of life in COPD patients. However, cardiac benefits remain unclear, warranting further studies.
Keywords: Oxygen therapy, Exercise rehabilitation, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, Exercisecapacity, cardiorespiratory function
Received: 06 Jun 2025; Accepted: 04 Sep 2025.
Copyright: © 2025 Muge, Suriguga, Yuqing, Aronggaowa, Taojin and Chen. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY). The use, distribution or reproduction in other forums is permitted, provided the original author(s) or licensor are credited and that the original publication in this journal is cited, in accordance with accepted academic practice. No use, distribution or reproduction is permitted which does not comply with these terms.
* Correspondence: Taojin Taojin, Department of Geriatrics and Respiratory Medicine, Affiliated Hospital of Inner Mongolia Minzu University, Inner Mongolia Minzu University, Tiaoliao, China
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