Effect of Incentive Spirometry on Asthmatic Pregnant Women

Abstract

Background: Among the most prevalent chronic diseases that make pregnancy more difficult is asthma. Respiratory function alterations during pregnancy may interact with underlying asthma, leading to poor disease control and significant maternal and fetal morbidity. Therefore, this study was conducted to examine the impact of adding flow incentive spirometry to inhaled corticosteroid therapy in pregnant women with asthma to improve maternal outcomes. Methods: This study included 60 pregnant women, whose ages ranged from thirty to forty, and whose body mass indexes (BMIs) were between 25 and 29.9kg/m². One group was given budesonide (200-400 mcg twice day) as a medical treatment for 8 weeks; the other group served as a control, and the study group, which received sessions of the incentive spirometer 3 sessions per week for eight weeks. Assessment was done using spirometry to measure forced vital capacity (FVC) and ultrasound to evaluate diaphragmatic excursion before and after one and two months of the treatment. Results: no significant change (p > 0.05) was detected in both the control and study groups regarding the FVC and diaphragmatic excursion after one month of treatment. However, both groups showed a significant increase in FVC (p=0.02; p=0.01) and diaphragmatic excursion (p=0.04; p=0.02) after two months, respectively. At 1 month (p=0.04) as well as 2 months (p=0.000) after treatment, the study group had a statistically significant improvement in diaphragmatic excursion in comparison with the control group. Conclusion: The incentive spirometer is a safe, cheap, adjunctive method for increasing diaphragmatic excursion and maintaining FVC in pregnant women with asthma.