Effects of a cognitive rehabilitation programme on cognitive function, self-management and quality of life in patients with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease

Aim The study purpose was to investigate effects of a cognitive rehabilitation programme on cognitive function, self-management and quality of life in patients with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease. Background Cognitive impairment is frequently observed in chronic obstructive pulmonary disease patients, and it interferes with many aspects of self-management, which is fundamental to disease management and quality of life. Design The design is quasi-experimental. Methods Data collection was performed between June 2018 and March 2019. Study participants were 60 in- or out-patients with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease. The cognitive rehabilitation programme involved six 30-min sessions administered over a period of 2 weeks and consisted of six areas: attention, memory, language, visuospatial perception, executive function and problem solving. Cognitive function, self-management and quality of life were measured at three times (preintervention and immediately and 4 weeks after intervention). Results Cognitive function, self-management and quality of life were found to be significantly improved over time after administration of the cognitive rehabilitation programme. However, no significant improvement was observed in the control group. Conclusions Our findings support the potential usefulness of cognitive intervention to promote cognitive function, self-management ability and quality of life in patients with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease. Summary statement What is already known about this topic? Cognitive impairment interferes with many aspects of self-management, such as monitoring symptoms, adherence to medication regimens and the maintenance of healthy lifestyles, which are fundamental to the management of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD). Despite the importance of cognitive functions, few studies have been attempted to the investigate effects of cognitive rehabilitation programmes in COPD patients. What this paper adds? Cognitive function, self-management and quality of life were significantly improved over time after administration of the cognitive rehabilitation programme. The implications of this paper: Our findings support the importance of cognitive rehabilitation intervention for improving cognitive function, self-management ability and quality of life in COPD patients. The present study also provides a resource for an effective cognitive rehabilitation programme that can be used by nurses or other clinical practitioners to improve cognitive function in COPD patients with cognitive impairment.