POWERbreathe Inspiratory Muscle Training is clinically proven and beneficial for the following medical conditions:

• COPD >
• Heart Failure >
• Asthma >
• Thoracic Surgery (Pre & Post) >
• Ventilator Weaning >
• Neuromuscular Disease >
• Cystic Fibrosis >

• IMT for other conditions where dyspnoea is present

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  • Because Inspiratory Muscle Training influences dyspnoea directly at a cortical level, it is also helpful for managing other conditions where dyspnoea is present, in addition to COPD and asthma. These include:

    • Elderly people¹⁸ (with non-specific dyspnoea Copestake & McConnell, 1995) 
    • Neuromuscular disease¹ 
    • Parkinson's disease² 
    • Prior-polio³ 
    • Spinal cord injury⁴ 
    • Sleep apnoea and snoring¹⁹ (Heijdra et al., 1996) 
    • Exercise-induced paradoxical vocal fold motion¹³

• Inspiratory muscle training helpful in other medical conditions

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  • Inspiratory muscle training has also been shown to be helpful in other medical conditions, including: 

    • Muscular dystrophy⁵ 
    • Multiple Sclerosis⁶ 
    • Voice and speech disorders⁷ 
    • Postoperative pulmonary complications⁸ 
    • Restrictive thoracic disease⁹ 
    • Severe chronic pulmonary hypertension¹⁰ 
    • Inspiratory stridor¹¹ 
    • Duchenne muscular dystrophy¹² 
    • Tetraplegia¹⁴ 
    • Myasthenia gravis¹⁵ 
    • Bronchiectasis¹⁶ 
    • Chronic hemodialysis¹⁷

• Blog posts supporting POWERbreathe for medical conditions

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  • • POWERbreathe K5 helps 93 year-old inhale her much needed medication

The Research

Links to research papers, published in peer-reviewed, high quality scientific journals. As well as original studies, we have also included some articles that review IMT; these have been written by experts in this field of research.

1. Neuromuscular disease¹

   • 2 Years' experience with inspiratory muscle training in patients with neuromuscular disorders.
   • INSPIRATIonAL - INSPIRAtory muscle Training In Amyotrophic Lateral sclerosis.
   • Guidelines for respiratory management of children with neuromuscular weakness

   Parkinson's disease²

   • Inspiratory muscle training and the perception of dyspnea in Parkinson's disease.

   Prior-polio³

   • Inspiratory muscle training in patients with prior polio who use part- time assisted ventilation.

   Spinal cord injury⁴

   • Resistive inspiratory muscle training: its effectiveness in patients with acute complete cervical cord injury.
   • Pulmonary function and spinal cord injury.

   Muscular dystrophy⁵

   • Comparison study of chest physiotherapy home training programmes on respiratory functions in patients with muscular dystrophy.

   Multiple Sclerosis⁶

   • Randomized Control Trial of Effects of a 10-Week Inspiratory Muscle Training Program on Measures of Pulmonary Function in Persons with Multiple Sclerosis.

   Voice and speech disorders⁷

   • Respiratory muscle strength training applications. Purpose of review: To provide an overview of respiratory muscle strength training applications for voice and speech disorders.
   • Respiratory muscle strength training applications.
   • Laryngeal Movements During Inspiratory Muscle Training in Healthy Subjects

   Postoperative pulmonary complications⁸

   • The influence of inspiratory muscle training on diaphragmatic mobility, pulmonary function and maximum respiratory pressures in morbidly obese individuals: a pilot study
   • Preoperative intensive inspiratory muscle training to prevent postoperative pulmonary complications in high-risk patients undergoing CABG surgery: a randomized clinical trial.
   • Feasibility of preoperative inspiratory muscle training in patients undergoing coronary artery bypass surgery with a high risk of postoperative pulmonary complications: a randomized controlled pilot study.
   • Preoperative physical therapy for elective cardiac surgery patients (Review)

   Restrictive thoracic disease⁹

   • Respiratory Muscle Training in Restrictive Thoracic Disease: A Randomized Controlled Trial.

   Severe chronic pulmonary hypertension¹⁰

   • Exercise and respiratory training improve exercise capacity and quality of life in patients with severe chronic pulmonary hypertension.

    Inspiratory stridor¹¹

   • Inspiratory Muscle Training: A Simple, Cost-effective Treatment for Inspiratory Stridor.

   Duchenne muscular dystrophy¹²

   • Dose-dependent effect of individualized respiratory muscle training in children with Duchenne muscular dystrophy.
   • Inspiratory muscle training in patients with Duchenne muscular dystrophy.

   Exercise-induced paradoxical vocal fold motion¹³

   • Inspiratory Muscle Training in Exercise-Induced Paradoxical Vocal Fold Motion.
   • Inspiratory muscle strength training with behavioral therapy in a case of a rower with presumed exercise-induced paradoxical vocal-fold dysfunction.

   Tetraplegia¹⁴

   • Respiratory training for a person with C3-C4 tetraplegia.
   • Training of the respiratory muscles in individuals with tetraplegia.
   • Resistive inspiratory muscle training in sleep-disordered breathing of traumatic tetraplegia.

   Myasthenia gravis¹⁵

   • Effects of 8-Week, Interval-Based Inspiratory Muscle Training and Breathing Retraining in Patients With Generalized Myasthenia Gravis.
   • Respiratory muscle training in patients with moderate to severe myasthenia gravis.

   Bronchiectasis¹⁶

   • Exercise training and inspiratory muscle training in patients with bronchiectasis.

   Chronic hemodialysis¹⁷

   • Specific inspiratory muscle training in chronic hemodialysis.

   Elderly people¹⁸

   • Effects of Inspiratory Muscle Training on Exercise Capacity and Spontaneous Physical Activity in Elderly Subjects: a Randomized Controlled Pilot Trial.

   Sleep apnoea and snoring¹⁹

   • Acute and chronic responses of the upper airway to inspiratory loading in healthy awake humans: An MRI study.

   Other

   • Inspiratory muscle training reduces blood pressure and sympathetic activity in hypertensive patients: A randomized controlled trial.
   • Respiratory muscle training improves cardiopulmonary function and exercise tolerance in subjects with subacute stroke: a randomized controlled trial
   • Prophylactic inspiratory muscle training in patients undergoing coronary artery bypass graft.
   • Inspiratory muscle resistive training in respiratory failure.
   • Inspiratory muscle training during treatment with corticosteroids in humans.
   • Suspected Statin-Induced Respiratory Muscle Myopathy During Long-Term Inspiratory Muscle Training in a Patient With Diaphragmatic Paralysis.
   • Idiopathic diaphragmatic paralysis-satisfactory improvement of inspiratory muscle function by inspiratory muscle training. 
   • Effects of an inspiratory muscle rehabilitation program in the postoperative period of cardiac surgery.
   • Prevention of pulmonary complications after upper abdominal surgery by preoperative intensive inspiratory muscle training: a randomized controlled pilot study.
   • [Fewer lung complications following inspiratory muscle training in patients undergoing coronary bypass surgery: a randomized trial].
   • Inspiratory muscle training to enhance weaning from mechanical ventilation.
   • Pulmonary Rehabilitation: Joint ACCP/AACVPR Evidence-Based Clinical Practice Guidelines.
   • Effect of respiratory muscle training on pulmonary function in preoperative preparation of tobacco smokers.