Evidence map›Paper›PMID 15860712›Full record

Trial reportThorax2005

Polyunsaturated fatty acids improve exercise capacity in chronic obstructive pulmonary disease.

R Broekhuizen, E F M Wouters, E C Creutzberg, C A P M Weling-Scheepers, A M W J Schols

Open access · bronzeAbstract readClinical TrialRandomized Controlled Trial
PubMed Full text at PMC Publisher
In one paragraph

Trial report in Thorax, 2005. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 63 papers, 6 of them syntheses that pooled it.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
63citing papers in PubMed, 6 pooled it
5.9field-weighted citation impact, top 4% of its field
1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

The trial behind it

Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.

Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

63 citing papers in PubMed, 6 syntheses or guidelines pooled it, 182 citations in OpenAlex.

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  16. Medical nutrition therapy in chronic obstructive pulmonary disease: A narrative review.Nutrition in clinical practice : official publication of the American Society for Parenteral and Enteral Nutrition · 2025
    Review
  17. Review
  18. Review
  19. Review
  20. Natural Products for the Management of Asthma and COPD.Handbook of experimental pharmacology · 2025
    Review

3 more citing papers are in PubMed but not listed here.

4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

5 authors at 1 institution in 1 country.

R BroekhuizenDepartment of Respiratory Medicine, University Hospital Maastricht, Maastricht, The Netherlands. r.broekhuizen@pul.unimaas.nl
E F M Wouters
E C Creutzberg
C A P M Weling-Scheepers
A M W J Schols
Maastricht University · NL

Funding

No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

backgroundMuscle wasting and decreased muscle oxidative capacity commonly occur in patients with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD). Polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFA) have been shown to mediate several inflammatory and metabolic pathways which may be involved in the pathogenesis of muscle impairment in COPD. The aim of this study was to investigate the effect of PUFA modulation on systemic inflammation, reversal of muscle wasting, and functional status in COPD.

methodsEighty patients with COPD (57 men) with forced expiratory volume in 1 second (FEV1) 37.3 (13.8)% predicted received 9 g PUFA or placebo daily in a double blind randomised fashion during an 8 week rehabilitation programme. Body composition (bioelectrical impedance), functional capacity (lung function, incremental cycle ergometry test, submaximal cycle test, isokinetic quadriceps strength) and inflammatory markers (C-reactive protein (CRP), interleukin (IL)-6 and tumour necrosis factor (TNF)-alpha) were assessed at baseline and after 8 weeks.

resultsBoth groups had similar increases in weight, fat-free mass (FFM), and muscle strength. The peak load of the incremental exercise test increased more in the PUFA group than in the placebo group (difference in increase 9.7 W (95% CI 2.5 to 17.0), p = 0.009) even after adjustment for FFM. The duration of the constant work rate test also increased more in patients receiving PUFA (difference in increase 4.3 min (95% CI 0.6 to 7.9), p = 0.023). The positive effects of PUFA could not be attributed to a decrease in systemic levels of CRP, IL-6 and TNF-alpha.

conclusionsThis is the first study to show beneficial effects of PUFA on exercise capacity in patients with COPD.

Indexed as

C-Reactive ProteinDouble-Blind MethodExercise ToleranceFatty Acids, UnsaturatedFemaleForced Expiratory VolumeHumansInterleukin-6MaleMiddle AgedMuscular DiseasesPneumoniaPulmonary Disease, Chronic ObstructiveTumor Necrosis Factor-alphaVital CapacityWasting SyndromeC-Reactive ProteinFatty Acids, UnsaturatedInterleukin-6Tumor Necrosis Factor-alpha

Identifiers

PMID15860712
PMCPMC1758900
OpenAlexW1995777086

What OpenQuestion holds

Textmetadata
Read underepoch 390

Registered trials

None linked

Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.