Barriers to Exercise in Difficult Asthma in the WATCH Cohort

Introduction: Exercise is recommended in guidelines for asthma management and has beneficial effects on symptom control, inflammation and lung function in patients with sub optimally controlled asthma. Despite this, physical activity levels in patients with difficult asthma are often impaired. Understanding the barriers to exercise in asthma is crucial for increasing activity in these patients, and in implementing a successful, disease modifying exercise training programme in this group.Method:Patients in the WATCH Difficult Asthma Cohort completed an Exercise Therapy Burden Questionnaire (ETBQ). The results (n=62) were analysed with contemporaneous asthma related data to assess for correlation.Results:Patients were reflective of a difficult asthma cohort; a mainly female (69%), atopic (63%), overweight (mdn BMI 29.3[IQR 25.5-36.2) group (mdn age 53.5 [IQR 38.75, 65.25], with impaired spirometry (mdn FEV1 73% predicted [IQR 59.5,86.6%]; mdn FEV/FVC ratio 72 [IQR56.5,78]) and poor symptom control (ACQ6 mdn 2.4 [IQR 1.28,3.2]). A high perceived barriers to exercise score was significantly correlated with asthma symptoms (r=.452, p=