Cognitive and Physical Training in Patients With Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease Patients

Prospective study of 24 patients diagnosed with moderate to severe COPD recruited from clinics at the University Health Network (Toronto, Canada) and other local community clinics. All study assessments and interventions will be performed remotely from the participants' homes. Participants will be randomly allocated to one of the following groups and stratified by sex: i) Cognitive-Physical Training (C-PT) group: home-based cognitive training (60 minutes, 5 times per week, using the BrainHQ platform) and physical training (5 days of aerobic training and 2 days of strength training per week); ii) Physical Training (PT) group: physical exercise training alone. Study participants will have weekly follow-up video calls with the study team to review training plans. Intervention feasibility will be evaluated through recruitment rate, program adherence, satisfaction, and assessment of adverse events. Efficacy of the intervention will be assessed via cognitive performance tests (BrainHQ), dual-task performance test (i.e., spelling backwards while peddling), physical fitness assessments (i.e., lower body strength, aerobic endurance, and physical function), physical activity levels (i.e., Fitbit, physical activity questionnaire), self-reported measures of dyspnea, health-related quality of life, activities of daily living, exercise self-efficacy, and mood. Participants will have repeat assessments after 4 and 8 weeks. Training to improve cognitive performance has shown to be successful in adults with different neurologic conditions, but has not been evaluated in COPD. The assessment of feasibility and effect estimates of home-based cognitive-physical training will serve as an important catalyst in the development of future clinical trials aimed at reducing the morbidity associated with cognitive and physical impairments in COPD.