By Debbie Bunch
October 6, 2025
Group Singing Improves Quality of Life for COPD Patients
Australian researchers presenting at the recent European Respiratory Society Congress in Amsterdam reported promising results for a group singing initiative aimed at improving quality of life and respiratory symptoms among patients with chronic lung disease.
The randomized controlled study involved 101 participants, with 50 assigned to the singing lessons and the other 51 receiving usual care and serving as controls. Among the group, 64 patients had COPD, and 37 had interstitial lung disease.
Participants in the singing group attended weekly online group singing sessions. The sessions lasted for 90 minutes each, and the program was delivered via Zoom over 12 weeks. Each session included warm-ups, breathing exercises, the singing of songs, and social check-ins. Patients were provided with free iPads and free data plans to ensure everyone could participate.
Songs in the sessions ranged from “Can’t Help Falling in Love” and “Let It Be” to “Pack Up Your Troubles” and more.
The researchers used patient scores on the SF-36 questionnaire to assess the project’s success. Overall, patients in the singing group scored 7.4 points higher than those in the control group. The most significant gains were seen in the domains measuring limitations related to physical health and emotional problems.
The evidence suggested that women, patients with anxiety or depression, and patients who had not previously completed pulmonary rehabilitation saw the biggest gains in terms of quality of life.
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Recent Respiratory Infections Raise the Risk for MACE in COPD Patients
Can a recent respiratory infection in COPD patients raise their risk for a major adverse cardiac event (MACE)? Danish researchers who looked at 4,707 patients with COPD and a positive pneumococcus culture between 2010 and 2017 found that it can.
The investigators tracked the occurrence of MACE in the patients over 14 days following a positive test for pneumococcus. MACE occurrence during that period was compared to MACE occurrence during the 180 days before the 14-day period and the 180 days after the 14-day period.
The primary outcome included a composite of cardiovascular events requiring hospitalization, and secondary outcomes included severe MACE.
Overall, 327 patients had a first event, and 60 patients died during the 14 days. The remaining 267 patients were included in the final analysis, which showed that:
- Exposure to pneumococcal infections was associated with a 4.6-fold increased risk of experiencing a MACE within the first 14 days compared to the control period.
- The rates were similar for patients without a history of MACE.
- Severe MACE, acute myocardial infarction, stroke, and revascularization procedures all showed a higher risk when compared with the primary outcome.
- For acute myocardial infarction, the incidence rate ratio was almost 10-fold in the risk period compared with the control period.
Can anything be done to mitigate the risk? The authors believe influenza and pneumonia vaccinations would be a good place to start. They write, “Further studies should address whether preventative interventions could mitigate risks in patients with COPD and pneumococcal infections.” The study was published by the Journal of the American College of Cardiology: Advances. Read Article
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Two is Better than One
An inhaler containing both budesonide and formoterol lowered the rate of asthma exacerbations in children with asthma by an average of 45% over usual care when used as the primary reliever therapy in a study conducted by investigators from New Zealand and the U.K.
The randomized controlled trial involved 360 children between the ages of five and 15 who were assigned to receive either a budesonide-formoterol inhaler or a salbutamol inhaler for on-demand symptom relief. All were diagnosed with mild asthma and were followed for one year. Asthma exacerbation rates were 0.23 per participant per year in the combined therapy group vs. 0.41 per participant per year in the single therapy group.
According to the authors, this means that for every 100 children with mild asthma who are switched to the combined therapy, the health care system would see 18 fewer asthma attacks per year.
Both treatments were found to be safe, with no differences seen in terms of growth, lung function, or asthma control between the two groups.
The authors note that the combined therapy has been recommended for adults with asthma for some time now, and they believe these findings suggest it is time for it to become the standard of care for children as well. “In children aged 5-15 years with mild asthma, budesonide-formoterol reliever monotherapy is superior to salbutamol for preventing asthma attacks, with a similar safety profile,” they write.
Incorporating the use of the combined therapy into global asthma treatment strategies could reduce disparities in care and provide more effective, evidence-based treatments to all children.
The Lancet published the study.
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