Control Group

Buteyko "Control Group" Training

by P. Heinemann, L. Motina and C. Bevin

The authors of the Buteyko Method Video were all major participants in completing this trial and in analysing and publishing relevant data.

Twelve patients from the Buteyko trial (December, 1994, Mater Hospital, Brisbane) 'control' group were trained in the Buteyko method in October, 1995. Mean age of subjects was 49±18 and there were 3 women. Data were obtained from questionnaires given prior to the course and 4 and 8 weeks after beginning of the training. In 8 months a telephone review was made of progress. One patient aged 58 stopped practising the Buteyko method after 4 weeks for a reason unrelated to the training or health. Ten subjects responded to the questionnaires at 8 weeks and 8 months. A telephone review was used to obtain data from 1 patient at 8 weeks. Data was kept as a Microsoft Excel worksheet and compared using paired or non-paired t-test, assuming that data were normally distributed. All the results are given as mean ± standard deviation.

The daily ß-agonist dose was determined as a sum of adjusted dose of nebulised and delivered by metered dose inhaler Salbutamol, Salmeterol and Terbutaline. To obtain an adjusted ß-agonist dose, the dose of nebulised Salbutamol was divided by 5 and the dose of Salmeterol multiplied by 12.

Table 1

ß-Agonist Consumption
	Control	4 weeks		8 weeks		8 month
	µg/day	µg/day	reduction	µg/day	reduction	µg/day	reduction
mean	1733 ± 1231	628 ± 886	0.75 ± 0.28	324 ± 576	0.81 ± 0.22	228 ± 467	0.90 ± 0.15
p		0.018		0.003		0.002
n	12	11		10		10

At the beginning of the training, mean ß-agonist use was 1836 ± 1238 µ. The dose of nebulised Salbutamol for two patients who were using less than 5 ml in 3-6 months were omitted. The dose dropped with time to a minimum at 8 months which was 228± 467µg. The results are summarised in Table 1. In 4 weeks the reduction in ß-agonist was 75%, in 8 weeks - 81%, in 8 months - 90%.

The initial dose of inhaled steroids was 1270±813 (see Table 2). There was no statistically significant reduction in the daily dose at 4 weeks and 8 weeks.

Table 2

Inhaled Steroids Consumption µg/day
	Control	4 weeks	8 weeks	8 month
	1270 ± 813	1150 ± 1082	1425 ± 1101	850 ± 753
p		0.78	0.73	0.25
n	10	10	10	10

Symptoms Occurrence and Ability to Overcome Asthma Symptoms

At the end of the training most of the patients improved their asthma symptoms. In 4 weeks 8% of patients reported that they were no longer having asthma symptoms, 74% had asthma symptoms with less frequency, 8% had asthma symptoms with the same frequency. In 8 weeks 14% of patients were no longer having asthma symptoms and 86% of patients had asthma symptoms with less frequency.

In 4 weeks 8% of patients were able to overcome asthma symptoms all the time, 25% - most of the time and 58% - some of the time. In 8 weeks 29% of patients were able to overcome asthma symptoms all of the time, 57% - most of the time and 14% - some of the time.

The present study is an uncontrolled trial of the Buteyko method with 12 subjects from the 'control' group of the official Buteyko clinical trial at the Mater Hospital, Brisbane conducted by Prof C. Mitchell and Dr. S. Bowler, The training was undertaken by the patients who requested Buteyko treatment.

All the patients showed substantial reduction in daily ß-agonist consumption. According to the Buteyko concept patients were instructed to use ß-agonists only if required. During the course it was possible to stop the most damaging medication, namely nebulised ß-agonist first, partially substituting it by less invasive metered dose inhalers (MDI). The dose of ß-agonist delivered by MDI was reduced then according to improvement in asthma symptoms.

There was no statistically significant change in mean dose of inhaled steroids. This is a typical feature of Buteyko training as it implies gradual reduction in steroid medication intake that follows a quick reduction in ß-agonist intake.

Reduction of all medication followed the improvement of asthma symptoms and general condition, which would be impossible to achieve by any other non-medication techniques. For the majority of the patients asthma attacks appeared with less frequency or disappeared completely. Almost all of the patients felt more confident in their ability to manage their asthma and were able to manage symptoms using breathing exercises instead of medication. All these facts point to improvement in quality of life.

The present study gives more evidence that the Buteyko method is not "subjective" and gives stable, long lasting results with any asthmatic subjects.

The authors thank Dr. L. Motin for the help with data analysis.