Capnography-Assisted Learned Monitored (CALM) Breathing Therapy for COPD

Columbia University42 enrolled

Overview

This pilot study is part of a phased approach to refine, optimize, and test the feasibility of CALM Breathing. Preliminary participant feedback from the Capnography-Assisted Respiratory Therapy (CART) study was applied to adapt and design CALM Breathing (including its dose, schedule, delivery, and home program). This pilot builds on initial lessons learned and identifies intervention areas still needing greater development to assure the success of a future large trial, targeting a subpopulation at risk, that is, those with COPD and anxiety sensitivity.

The purpose of this study is to evaluate an experimental breathing therapy for adults with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) called Capnography-Assisted Learned, Monitored (CALM) Breathing. CALM Breathing is an experimental therapy that uses exercises combined with breathing feedback. CALM Breathing promotes self-regulated breathing to relieve symptoms. In sessions, biofeedback of breathing is predominately provided by two devices that are cleared by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) to measure carbon dioxide at the end of a breath and breathing rate. A capnograph uses tubing at the nose to evaluate levels of carbon dioxide and breathing rate from exhaled air and to display breathing patterns. A pulse oximeter for home use also evaluates breathing rate at the fingertip with a sensor that detects blood flow changes. The investigators are studying CALM Breathing to see if it can relieve shortness of breath and other symptoms; reduce stress; and improve quality of life and exercise tolerance in adults with COPD. The investigators are planning to recruit up to approximately 65 subjects with COPD at Columbia University Irving Medical Center. Participants will be assigned by chance into one of two treatment groups: 1) CALM Breathing or Usual Care (Waitlist). Participants will have an equal chance of being assigned to either group. CALM Breathing is a 4-week therapy program that uses breathing exercises with biofeedback to reduce shortness of breath and other symptoms related to COPD. Biofeedback uses sensors to give information about breathing pattern and airflow to help participants better self-regulate their breathing. Participants assigned by chance to CALM Breathing, will participate in eight breathing therapy sessions, provided twice per week; each session will each take approximately 1-hour. All participants will receive 16-20 standard care pulmonary rehabilitation sessions beginning at approximately week 6-10. Participants will complete three study evaluation visits (at baseline, \~6 weeks, and at a 3-month follow-up).

Study Type

INTERVENTIONAL

Allocation

RANDOMIZED

Purpose

TREATMENT

Masking

SINGLE

Enrollment

Conditions

COPD

Interventions

CALM BreathingBEHAVIORAL

CALM Breathing is a mind-body breathing therapy that links CO2 changes to dyspnea and anxiety symptoms and targets breathing efficiency and self-efficacy in COPD. CALM Breathing: Individual interoception- based breathing therapy with capnography (non- exercise training) Home Program: Monitored home- based breathing exercises; RR biofeedback; goal setting; exercise logging. Coaching: Motivational interviewing. Personnel: PT, EP, occupational therapist, or nurse. Frequency: 1-hour sessions, twice per week for 4 weeks. Exercises: • 10 core breathing exercises with ETCO2 biofeedback in recovery postures at rest and with body movement (gentle stretches and brief low-moderate intensity physical activity). • Breathing biofeedback (ETCO2, RR, airflow pattern). Education: Education on anxiety; COPD Patient Guide.

Traditional outpatient PRBEHAVIORAL

After referral to Columbia's outpatient pulmonary rehabilitation (PR) program, participants randomized to the Wait-List control group will be put on a PR wait list (usual care). In Phase II, all participants will receive PR of 1-hour sessions, twice per week for 10 weeks. Traditional outpatient PR: Group exercise training (ET) combined with pursed lips breathing (PLB) training; 1:2 therapist to patient ratio. Home Program: Unmonitored walking exercise 1-2 days/week; no biofeedback monitoring. Coaching: Traditional monitoring and verbal cueing. Personnel: PT or EP. Frequency: 1-hour sessions, twice per week for 10 weeks. Exercises: • ET of muscles of ambulation with exercise equipment, such as on a treadmill or cycle ergometer (30-min), plus 15-min strengthening and posture exercises; O2 supplementation as needed. No breathing biofeedback. • PLB instruction only during exercise training. Education: Verbal and written information.

Eligibility

Sex: ALLMin age: 18 Years

Medical Language ↔ Plain English

Inclusion Criteria: * be adult males or females * have a diagnosis of COPD as defined by FEV1/FVC of \< 0.70 on spirometry testing or as shown on a chest computed tomography (CT) * receive standard care of pharmacotherapy with bronchodilators (e.g. long-acting beta-agonists, LABAs, or long-acting muscarinic antagonists, or LAMAs) as prescribed by their physician * are in stable medical condition as determined by pulmonary rehabilitation physician (i.e., not in need of acute higher level of care such as hospitalization) * have dyspnea \[as documented in their medical record or based on self-report; e.g., ≥1 on modified Medical Research Council questionnaire (mMRC) dyspnea; or ≥2 dyspnea score on item: "Over the last 4 weeks, I have had shortness of breath: almost every day = 4, several days a week = 3, a few days a month = 2, only with lung/respiratory infections = 1, not at all = 0; or "yes" response of binary presence of dyspnea-related avoidance of activities: "Have you avoided any activities due to shortness of breath?")\] * have elevated dyspnea-related anxiety symptoms: * DMQ-CAT dyspnea anxiety score ≤50; or * DMQ-CAT activity avoidance ≤50; * VAS dyspnea anxiety scale score of ≥20, administered with 6-minute walk test; * ASI-16: item #10, "It scares me when I become short of breath (at least "some"); * require ≤ 24 hours per day of supplemental oxygen * Mini-Mental State Examination score ≥24 * speak, read, and write English * are stably medicated for at least 4 weeks prior to study entry with long-acting anti-anxiety medication (e.g., selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors, SSRIs, and serotonin norepinephrine reuptake inhibitors, SNRIs), benzodiazepines, or cannabis if prescribed, with no plans to change psychotropic medication dose * have not received any pulmonary rehabilitation training in the past 12 months. Exclusion Criteria: * are not eligible for pulmonary rehabilitation * are actively being treated for cancer * have morbid obesity (Body Mass Index (BMI) \> 40) * have hypercapnia of ETCO2 \> 50 mmHg at rest * have a musculoskeletal disorder severe enough to interfere with walking or ability to exercise or have neuromuscular disease * have had a seizure in the past 3 months * reside in an acute hospital, sub-acute care, assisted living, or nursing home * are active smokers * are pregnant * have any clinically significant cardiac disease or any electrocardiogram (ECG) abnormality obtained during the screening, which in the opinion of the investigator may put the patient at risk or interfere with study assessments * have low literacy as indicated by scores of 4 or 5 ("often" and "always") on the Single Item Literacy Screener (SILS) that asks, "How often do you need to have someone help you when you read instructions, pamphlets, or other written material from your doctor or pharmacy?" * have a diagnosis or medical history of schizophrenia, psychotic disorders, or bipolar disorder as diagnosed by study psychologist * have alcohol or substance abuse or dependence within the past 6 months as evaluated by study psychologist * have serious suicidal risk (suicidal ideation or suicidal behaviors within the past year) as defined by a score of \>1 on psychologist interview-administered Clinician Suicide Assessment Checklist, which is a Modified Columbia-Suicide Severity Rating Scale-CSSRS * Take prescribed opioids ≥50 MME (morphine mg equivalents) per day. A dosage threshold of ≥50 MME significantly increases the risk of fatal respiratory depression and necessitates additional precautions. Participants' opioid medication dose will be confirmed by their prescribing physician (e.g., their primary care or pain management doctor). * Actively take both prescribed opioids and benzodiazepines. Combining benzodiazepines and opioids significantly increases the risk of respiratory failure in patients with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease.

Locations (2)

New York University Grossman School of Medicine

New York, New York, United States

Columbia University Irving Medical Center

New York, New York, United States

Outcomes

Primary Outcomes

Mean Attendance Rate of CALM Breathing Treatment Sessions

Attendance rate will be measured from the total number of sessions completed out of the 8 total.

Time frame: 4 weeks

Drop-Out Rate

The drop-out rate will be calculated from the total number of participants who drop-out from receiving the CALM Breathing therapy.

Time frame: 3 months

CALM Breathing Satisfaction Rating

The acceptability of the CALM Breathing therapy will be evaluated based on mixed methods data collected from CALM Breathing satisfaction ratings. Participants were asked item 8 of FACIT ("how do rate this treatment overall?"), which was rated from 0 to 4 (0 = "poor" and 4 = "excellent") in which higher scores indicate more satisfaction (better outcome).

Time frame: 4 weeks

Secondary Outcomes

Chronic Respiratory Disease Questionnaire (CRQ) Score

This questionnaire measures the impact of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) on a person's life. It consists of 20 items across 4 domains (dyspnea, fatigue, emotional function, and master). Items are on a 7-point Likert scale (1 - 7) and are scored from 1 (most severe) to 7 (no impairment) (better outcome). For this trial, questions 4a- 4e are included which is the dyspnea domain. The 5 scores are summated and divided by the number of items. The range is 1-7. Higher scores indicate better outcomes.

Time frame: Baseline, 4 weeks, 3 months

Dyspnea Management Questionnaire Computer Adaptive Test (DMQ-CAT) Score

The DMQ-CAT is a 71-item questionnaire that measures dyspnea anxiety. Raw scores range from 0 (low) to 6 (high). These raw scores are converted into T-scores with a mean score of 50 and a standard deviation of ±10. The full range of T-scores is 0 to 100 for DMQ-CAT Self-Efficacy, DMQ-CAT Intensity and DMQ-CAT Anxiety scales. The DMQ-CAT software automatically scores these scales. Higher scores indicate better outcomes.

Data from ClinicalTrials.gov

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