Thesis (Ph.D.) - Cairo University - Faculty of Physical Therapy - Department of Physical Therapy for Cardiopulmonary and Geriatrics Disorders

Background and purpose: Asthma is an important worldwide health problem. Asthma carries major health risks with the most cause-specific mortalities being those of respiratory and cardiovascular diseases .Asthma may affect the respiratory function of children and adults.The aim of this study was to compare of soft tissue manipulation versus traditional physiotherapy program on diaphragmatic excursion in asthmatic patients. Subjects and methods: {u200E}Forty men and women participated in this study. Their age ranged from 20to 40 years old, suffered from mild asthma (FEV1 {u2265} 80 %). They were assigned into two equal groups:Group (A) consisted of 20 participants received soft tissue manipulation of upper cervical region (C0-1), upper dorsal region (T3-4) and thoracolumbar junction followed by muscle energy technique once weekly for three weeks .Group (B) consisted of 20 participants received traditional physiotherapy program (pursed lip breathing exercise, diaphragmatic breathing exercise) ten repetitions each exercise per session, three times a week for three weeks respectively . Results: There was significant improvement for group (A) and group (B) in FEV1 (4.10%{u2191}, 3.27 %{u2191}), PEF (22.85%{u2191}, 3.2 %{u2191}), diaphragmatic excursion (19.6%{u2191}, 4.5 %{u2191}) and maximum inspiratory pressure (14.58%{u2191}, 6.11 %{u2191}) for all participant in Group A and B respectively, but there was statistical significance in favor of group A

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