This systematic review and meta-analysis evaluated the effectiveness of pulmonary rehabilitation programs and other rehabilitation interventions in adults with asthma. A total of 36 randomized controlled trials were included. However, only 26 were eligible for meta-analysis due to variability in comparisons and outcome measures across studies. When pulmonary rehabilitation was compared with education combined with breathing exercises, results showed little to no difference in quality of life as measured by the Asthma Quality of Life Questionnaire (mean difference of 0.01; 95% confidence interval: −0.48 to 0.50, based on 163 participants across three studies).
The review concluded that pulmonary rehabilitation may not offer a significant advantage over education and breathing exercises in improving asthma-related quality of life. The overall certainty of evidence was rated as low to very low, limiting the strength of the conclusions. As a result, the effectiveness of specific rehabilitation approaches, whether used alone or in combination, remains uncertain. Further high-quality research is needed to determine the true impact of these interventions on asthma outcomes.
Reference: Zampogna E, Oliva FM, Del Furia MJ, et al. Effectiveness of Rehabilitation Interventions in Adults With Asthma: A Systematic Review and Meta-analysis. Am J Phys Med Rehabil. 2025 Mar 1;104(3):e28-e36. doi: 10.1097/PHM.0000000000002552. Epub 2024 Jul 3. PMID: 38958276.
