Are any of your patients living with bronchiectasis? Are they experiencing regular flare ups of symptoms, including chronic cough, fatigue, and lower respiratory infections? If so, your patients may be spending more time in the hospital and less time enjoying a healthy, active lifestyle.
Common Signs and Symptoms of Bronchiectasis:
Are your patients experiencing any of the following symptoms?
- Chronic cough that produces excess mucus
- Repeated respiratory infections
- Breathlessness and wheezing
- General fatigue
Bronchiectasis symptoms are triggered by enlarged airways that result from chronic inflammation and bacteria in the lungs. When patients’ airways become damaged from repeated inflammation and infection, their lungs lose the ability to clear mucus, which may cause more severe symptoms, including recurring, serious lung infections.
How to Treat Bronchiectasis Effectively:
Although bronchiectasis is irreversible, early diagnosis is essential to helping patients manage their symptoms and prevent recurring lung damage. Airway clearance, combined with other medications, is considered to be an effective therapy for treating bronchiectasis-related symptoms.[i]
Clinicians may prescribe an assortment of airway clearance techniques to improve pulmonary hygiene, including manual chest physiotherapy, breathing techniques, or oscillating positive expiratory pressure (OPEP) devices. But to ensure patients receive therapy that is effective in improving pulmonary function[ii] as well as comfortable, and easy-to-use, High Frequency Chest Wall Oscillation (HFCWO) therapy offers an efficient, long-term solution.
HFCWO Therapy, also known as “vest therapy”, works by delivering rapidly repeating pulses of air to the chest wall to loosen and thin mucus in the lungs. The oscillating airflow then propels the mucus into the larger airways, so it’s more easily coughed out. This type of airway clearance therapy can be performed inside a patient’s home, typically twice a day, and is designed to prevent mucus buildup and recurring lung infection.
Why HFCWO Therapy Does More Than Manage Bronchiectasis Symptoms
HFCWO Therapy via The SmartVest Airway Clearance System is more than an airway clearance device. It helps patients to get back to feeling their best with an easy-to-follow therapy routine they can perform independently, from anywhere.
One of the most unique features of HFCWO therapy is that it’s not just for managing bronchiectasis. If you have patients living with COPD, Cystic Fibrosis, or a neuromuscular condition, HFCWO therapy is beneficial for a variety of impaired breathing conditions.
With SmartVest, many patients find more than symptom relief; they discover the freedom to live a more active lifestyle with friends and family, without recurring symptoms disrupting their quality of life. In fact, in a longitudinal outcome-based study, patients using SmartVest experienced a reduction in bronchiectasis-related exacerbations, as well as significant decreases in overall hospitalizations (42%) and antibiotic prescriptions (38%). [iii]
Ready To Use The SmartVest With Your Patients?
If you’re ready to try SmartVest with your patients, contact our clinician support team by calling 800-462-1045.
Learn more about how SmartVest is different from other HFCWO therapy devices on the market and read additional clinical research on its ability to treat patients with bronchiectasis.
[i] Living with BE. “The Importance of Airway Clearance Therapy.” Retrieved from https://livingwithbe.com/airway-clearance-therapy/
[ii] Bronchiectasis News Today. “High Frequency Chest Wall Oscillation (HFCWO).” Retrieved from https://bronchiectasisnewstoday.com/high-frequency-chest-wall-oscillation-hfcwo/
[iii] SmartVest. “Incidence of Bronchiectasis-Related Exacerbation Rates After High Frequency Chest Wall Oscillation (HFCWO) Treatment—A Longitudinal Outcome-Based Study.” Retrieved from https://smartvest.com/clinical-evidence/incidence-bronchiectasis-related-exacerbation-rates-after-hfcwo-treatment-longitudinal-outcome-based-study/
