Ventilation & weaning · Rehabilitation in the critically ill
A Randomized Trial of an Intensive Physical Therapy Program for Patients with Acute Respiratory Failure
| Design | Multicentre randomised controlled trial |
|---|---|
| Treatment | Intensive physical therapy programme |
| Control | Standard-of-care physical therapy |
| Population | 120 patients with acute respiratory failure across five hospitals |
| Follow-up | 6 months |
| Primary endpoint | Continuous Scale Physical Functional Performance Test short form score at 1 month |
| Result | The intensive group received 12.4 sessions totalling 408 minutes versus 6.1 sessions and 86 minutes in standard care (p<0.001 for both). Physical function improved over time in both groups, but there was no difference in CS-PFP-10 score at 1, 3 or 6 months (p=0.73, 0.29 and 0.43) or in score trajectory (p=0.71). |
| Secondary endpoints | Physical function at 3 and 6 months, score trajectory |
An intensive PT program did not improve long-term physical functional performance compared with a standard-of-care program.
The trial authors, in the published abstract
A clean dose-response test — the intervention arm genuinely received far more therapy — and it found nothing. Consistent with Morris 2016 and later TEAM, which added evidence of harm at higher intensity.
Moss M, Nordon-Craft A, Malone D, et al. A Randomized Trial of an Intensive Physical Therapy Program for Patients with Acute Respiratory Failure. Am J Respir Crit Care Med 2016 May 15;193(10):1101-10.