ORIGINAL RESEARCH article
Front. Rehabil. Sci.
Sec. Pulmonary Rehabilitation
This article is part of the Research TopicAdaptations and Responses to Respiratory InterventionsView all 7 articles
Effects of a mobile app-based biofeedback breathing exercise program on handgrip strength, respiratory muscle activity, and pulmonary function in healthy adults
Provisionally accepted
- Woosuk University, Wanju-gun, Republic of Korea
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This study investigated the effects of a mobile app–based biofeedback breathing exercise program on handgrip strength, respiratory muscle activity, and pulmonary function in healthy young adults. Forty-eight participants were randomly assigned to an experimental group (n = 22), which performed app-based biofeedback breathing exercises, or a control group (n = 26), which engaged in traditional breathing exercises. Both groups completed three to four sessions per week for four weeks. Handgrip strength, respiratory muscle activity measured using surface electromyography, and pulmonary function assessed by spirometry were evaluated before and after the intervention. The experimental group showed a significant within-group improvement in handgrip strength (p < 0.05), although between-group differences were not significant. Significant reductions in external intercostal and rectus abdominis activity were observed in the experimental group (p < 0.05), whereas the control group demonstrated reduced external oblique activity (p < 0.05). Both groups improved in forced expiratory volume in one second (FEV₁) and the FEV₁/forced vital capacity (FVC) ratio (p < 0.05), with a greater FEV₁/FVC improvement observed in the experimental group. These findings suggest that mobile app–based biofeedback breathing exercises may enhance respiratory efficiency and optimize muscle activation patterns in healthy young adults, supporting their potential use as an accessible adjunct tool in pulmonary rehabilitation.
Keywords: Breathing exercise, Electromyography, handgrip strength, Mobile application, Pulmonary Function, Rehabilitation, Respiratory efficiency, young adults
Received: 31 Aug 2025; Accepted: 01 Dec 2025.
Copyright: © 2025 Kang, Park and JO. 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: Hee Jin JO
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