Chronic Effect of Whole-body Electrical Stimulation in COPD Patients

Randomized clinical trial. Patients with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) GOLD III or IV will undergo 16 sessions of Whole-body Electrical Stimulation (WB-EMS) or pulmonary rehabilitation (PR), twice a week. WB-EMS will be performed in association with squats, biceps and triceps exercises, climbing up and down a step, and abdominal exercises. There will be a progression in the number of muscle contractions after the fourth (from 64 to 96) and tenth sessions (96 to 120). PR will consist of upper and lower limb strengthening exercises. Both groups will perform aerobic exercise (essential component of the pulmonary rehabilitation program). Peripheral muscle strength (dynamometry), respiratory muscle strength (maximum inspiratory and expiratory pressure), muscle thickness (ultrasound), functional capacity (6MWT), quality of life (Saint George's Respiratory Questionnaire), inflammatory profile (PCR, IL-6 e IL-10, TNFα), oxidative stress (protein oxidation, superoxide dismutase and catalase, total hydrogen sulfides, dichlorofluorescein diacetate) will be assessed before and after the 16 sessions.