Bronchiectasis Supportive Therapy for Patients

Bronchiectasis, a chronic respiratory condition, can be debilitating for those suffering from it. While there is no cure, supportive therapy can be an effective way to help manage symptoms and improve patients' outcomes and quality of life.

In this article, we 'll discuss 5 components of a successful bronchiectasis supportive therapy program. We'll also explore why incorporating The SmartVest Airway Clearance System into your patients' care algorithm can significantly improve their treatment, helping them reduce flare-ups and breathe more easily.

Understanding Bronchiectasis Complications

For many patients, bronchiectasis symptoms will often coincide with other chronic lung diseases, such as chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD)¹ or asthma², further complicating treatment options.

Managing the comorbidity of various medical conditions can be challenging, especially when prescribing an effective therapy plan that caters to individual symptoms and their progression. What works for one patient may not work for another, making it even more difficult to provide comfort and relief to your patients.

As a result, patients may experience more exacerbations, forcing them back into hospitals as you reevaluate their treatment.

Clinician Checklist:

Developing a Therapy Plan for Bronchiectasis

The goal of your bronchiectasis supportive therapy program should be to improve lung function, reduce inflammation, and prevent the cycle of infection that could require hospitalization (or readmission) due to flare-ups.

Your therapy plan may include the following components:

1. Medications

Ensure your patients take the appropriate medications to manage their symptoms, control infections, and reduce inflammation. This may include:

• Antibiotics to treat infections
• Bronchodilators to open up the airways
• Expectorants to help clear mucus from the lungs
• Anti-inflammatory drugs to reduce inflammation

In some cases, oxygen therapy may be necessary to help support breathing.

1. Approved Breathing Exercises/Activities

Incorporating breathing exercises into your patients' plan can help improve lung function, strengthen respiratory muscles, and remove stale air from the lungs.³

But breathing is just one type of exercise they need to strengthen their lungs. Providing patients with approved cardiovascular and resistance-training exercises can make their lungs stronger and able to perform the task of transferring additional oxygen to other muscles during exercise.⁴

1. Nutritional Intervention

Maintaining proper nutrition can assist patients in keeping a healthy weight, which in turn can reduce the strain on their respiratory system.⁵ Certain foods can also help in reducing inflammation to improve lung function, whereas other foods may lead to an increase in mucus buildup.

For clinicians, it's important to educate patients on foods and habits to avoid that could compromise the lungs and cause symptoms to worsen.

1. The SmartVest Airway Clearance System

Incorporating airway clearance techniques and devices into your patients' bronchiectasis supportive therapy program can help remove excess mucus from their lungs.

The SmartVest Airway Clearance System is a High-Frequency Chest Wall Oscillation (HFCWO) therapy device that assists in eliminating excess mucus from the lungs, thereby reducing the risk of repeated inflammation and respiratory infections.

SmartVest is easy to use at home, delivers 360° chest coverage, and can be used independently. As for its effectiveness, studies have demonstrated that integrating SmartVest into an algorithm of care program can:

• Enhance lung function
• Decrease hospitalizations
• Improve the quality of life for patients⁶

Furthermore, SmartVest offers patients more Breathing Room™, making therapy comfortable with less squeeze and more release.⁷

5: Regular Monitoring and Communication

Ensuring that your patients are monitored regularly and making necessary adjustments to their program is crucial. If a medication is not proving effective or is causing unwanted side effects, it may be necessary to switch to an alternative.

Similarly, if a patient is struggling with a prescribed therapy, it may be helpful to suggest an alternative. Regular check-ins with your patients can help identify any issues or concerns and ensure that their program is working as intended.

The Vicious Vortex

With bronchiectasis patients, you want to stop the cycle of recurring infections, hospitalizations, and the progression of symptoms. By looking at treatment as a multi-modal approach rather than treating one thing at a time, this may help patients from developing a worsening of symptoms.⁸⁹¹⁰

Conclusion

A successful bronchiectasis supportive therapy plan should include a combination of medications, airway clearance techniques, exercise, and nutritional support. However, it is important to tailor the program to each patient's individual needs and to monitor their progress closely.

By doing so, clinicians can help their patients manage symptoms, reduce repeated flare ups, and improve overall quality of life.

For questions or help with adding SmartVest to your patients' bronchiectasis supportive therapy plan, contact our team today!

Resources:
[1] National Library of Medicine. "Bronchiectasis in COPD patients: more than a comorbidity?" Retreived from https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5436792/
[2] National Library of Medicine. "Does Asthma-Bronchiectasis Overlap Syndrome (ABOS) Really Exist?" Retrieved from https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/37071539/
[3] American Lung Association. "Breathing Exercises." Retrieved from https://www.lung.org/lung-health-diseases/wellness/breathing-exercises
[4] American Lung Association. " Exercise and Lung Health." Retrieved from https://www.lung.org/lung-health-diseases/wellness/exercise-and-lung-health
[5] BMJ Journals. "Body mass index and weight change are associated with adult lung function trajectories: the prospective ECRHS study." Retrieved from https://thorax.bmj.com/content/75/4/313
[6] Powner J, Nesmith A, Kirkpatrick DP, Nichols JK, Bermingham B, Solomon GM. Employment of an algorithm of care including chest physiotherapy results in reduced hospitalizations and stability of lung function in bronchiectasis. BMC Pulm Med. 2019;19(1):82. Published 2019 Apr 25
[7] Pokorney J. Comparison of Oscillatory Trough Pressure Generated by High Frequency Chest Wall Oscillation (HFCWO) Systems: A White Paper.
[8] Chalmers JD, Aliberti S, Filonenko A, et al. Characterization of the "frequent exacerbator phenotype" in bronchiectasis. Am J Respir Crit Care Med. 2018;197(11):1410-1420.
[9] Polverino E, Goeminne PC, McDonnell MJ, et al. European Respiratory Society guidelines for the management of adult bronchiectasis. Eur Respir J. 2017;50(3):1700629.
[10] Chalmers JD, Chang AB, Chotirmall SH, Dhar R, McShane PJ. Bronchiectasis. Nat Rev Dis Primers. 2018;4(1):45.

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