Partitioned Training of Patients With Idiopathic Pulmonary Fibrosis

November 27, 2025 updated by: Roger Goldstein, West Park Healthcare Centre

Randomized Controlled Trial of Partitioned Aerobic Exercise Training of Patients With Idiopathic Pulmonary Fibrosis

Idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis (IPF) is a lung disease that limits the ability to breathe enough for a good workout. One way to improve the exercise training is to reduce the number of muscles being trained together. By training one leg at a time, the patient does not have to breathe as much allowing each leg a better workout. Our groundwork suggests it may work in patients with IPF. This study will help decide whether one-legged exercise training is better at improving a patient's exercise endurance compared to the usual way of exercising with both legs at the same time.

Study Overview

Status

Status

Indicates the current recruitment status or the expanded access status.
Active, not recruiting

Conditions

Conditions

The disease, disorder, syndrome, illness, or injury that is being studied. On ClinicalTrials.gov, conditions may also include other health-related issues, such as lifespan, quality of life, and health risks.

Intervention / Treatment

Intervention / Treatment

A process or action that is the focus of a clinical study. Interventions include drugs, medical devices, procedures, vaccines, and other products that are either investigational or already available. Interventions can also include noninvasive approaches, such as education or modifying diet and exercise.

Detailed Description

Dyspnea is a major clinical manifestation of idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis (IPF). It becomes more severe and more limiting as the condition progresses. Many professional respiratory societies recommend that the standard of care for IPF includes pulmonary rehabilitation (PR). However, some patients with IPF are so limited by dyspnea that they are unable to tolerate levels of aerobic exercise training sufficient to induce the physiological adaptations that will improve functional and health related outcomes. Therefore, there is a need for exercise training interventions that will enhance the muscle training stimulus above that currently possible in individuals with a marked ventilatory limitation.

Partitioning large muscle exercise using one-legged high intensity training is more effective than conventional aerobic training when applied to patients with central ventilatory or cardiac limitation. Effective partitioned exercise enables an increased muscle load with less ventilatory load. It increases the training stimulus to the muscles as they work at a high intensity, relative to their current aerobic state, necessary to increase their capacity. As long as the active muscle mass can create the same demands on the central exercise components of the heart and circulation as does conventional two-legged exercise, this simple, inexpensive novel approach, will stimulate leg muscles sufficiently to improve overall cardiorespiratory fitness. For example, in those with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, one-legged training has been shown to provide a muscle specific stimulus sufficient to improve whole body peak oxygen uptake during pulmonary rehabilitation. A preliminary acute study of patients with IPF has demonstrated that during a laboratory simulation of an exercise training session, partitioning aerobic exercise extended exercise tolerance. Participants achieved double the work whilst exercising with one leg compared with two-legged cycle exercise. Partitioned training may therefore be an effective approach to exercise training in patients with IPF enrolled in PR.

The advent of pharmacological agents that stabilize the clinical course of IPF presents a window of opportunity for exercise rehabilitation to further improve function. The aim of this proposed study is to determine whether, within the setting of PR, partitioned aerobic exercise training with a one-legged cycle training regime is more effective than the conventional two-legged regimen in increasing exercise tolerance. The study hypothesis is that partitioned aerobic exercise training, using a one-legged training regime is more effective than conventional two-legged exercise training in increasing exercise tolerance (measured by constant power endurance) and cardiorespiratory fitness as measured by maximal oxygen uptake. The results will inform the best approach to produce clinically meaningful improvements in dyspnea and health status for those with IPF.

Study Type

Study Type

Describes the nature of a clinical study. Study types include interventional studies (also called clinical trials), observational studies (including patient registries), and expanded access.
Interventional

Enrollment (Estimated)

Enrollment

The number of participants in a clinical study. The "anticipated" enrollment is the target number of participants that the researchers need for the study.
50

Phase

Phase

The stage of a clinical trial studying a drug or biological product, based on definitions developed by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA). The phase is based on the study's objective, the number of participants, and other characteristics. There are five phases: Early Phase 1 (formerly listed as Phase 0), Phase 1, Phase 2, Phase 3, and Phase 4. Not Applicable is used to describe trials without FDA-defined phases, including trials of devices or behavioral interventions.
  • Not Applicable

Contacts and Locations

This section provides the contact details for those conducting the study, and information on where this study is being conducted.

Study Contact

Study Contact

The name and contact information for the person who can answer enrollment questions for a clinical study. Each location where the study is being conducted may also have a specific contact, who may be better able to answer those questions.

Study Locations

  • Canada
    • Ontario
      • Toronto, Ontario, Canada, M6M 2J5
        • West Park Healthcare Centre

Participation Criteria

Researchers look for people who fit a certain description, called eligibility criteria. Some examples of these criteria are a person's general health condition or prior treatments.

Eligibility Criteria

Eligibility Criteria

The key requirements that people who want to participate in a clinical study must meet or the characteristics they must have. Eligibility criteria consist of both inclusion criteria (which are required for a person to participate in the study) and exclusion criteria (which prevent a person from participating). Types of eligibility criteria include whether a study accepts healthy volunteers, has age or age group requirements, or is limited by sex.

Ages Eligible for Study

18 years and older (Adult, Older Adult)

Accepts Healthy Volunteers

No

Description

Inclusion Criteria:

  • confirmed idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis
  • Clinically stable
  • enrolled in pulmonary rehabilitation

Exclusion Criteria:

  • co-morbidities that might impair their ability to safely complete a pulmonary rehabilitation program
  • complete a pulmonary rehabilitation program within the previous 6 months
  • experienced an exacerbation less than six weeks before participation

Study Plan

This section provides details of the study plan, including how the study is designed and what the study is measuring.

How is the study designed?

Design Details

  • Primary Purpose: Treatment
  • Allocation: Randomized
  • Interventional Model: Parallel Assignment
  • Masking: Single

Arms and Interventions

Participant Group / Arm

Participant Group / Arm

A group or subgroup of participants in a clinical trial that receives a specific intervention/treatment, or no intervention, according to the trial's protocol.
Intervention / Treatment

Intervention / Treatment

A process or action that is the focus of a clinical study. Interventions include drugs, medical devices, procedures, vaccines, and other products that are either investigational or already available. Interventions can also include noninvasive approaches, such as education or modifying diet and exercise.
Experimental: intervention -1-leg cycle training
Primary aerobic training component one-legged, partitioned, cycle training. A progressive approach to combined intensity and duration will be taken. A cycle starting with intermittent high intensity one-legged exercise progressing to continuous duration of the target duration of 15 min for each leg and then restarting the cycle at a higher intensity.
Other: intervention -1-leg cycle training
partitioned aerobic exercise training
Active Comparator: usual care - 2-leg cycle training
Primary aerobic training component conventional two-legged cycle training. A progressive approach to combined intensity and duration will be taken. A cycle starting with intermittent high intensity exercise progressing to continuous duration of 30 min and then restarting the cycle at a higher intensity.
Other: usual care - 2-leg cycle training
conventional aerobic exercise training

What is the study measuring?

Primary Outcome Measures

Primary Outcome Measures

In a clinical study's protocol, the planned outcome measure that is the most important for evaluating the effect of an intervention/treatment. Most clinical studies have one primary outcome measure, but some have more than one.
Outcome Measure
Measure Description
Time Frame
Cycle exercise endurance time
Time Frame: Change from Baseline at discharge from 8 weeks of pulmonary rehabilitation
tolerance (time) of a constant power high intensity cycle endurance test
Change from Baseline at discharge from 8 weeks of pulmonary rehabilitation

Secondary Outcome Measures

Secondary Outcome Measures

In a clinical study's protocol, a planned outcome measure that is not as important as the primary outcome measure for evaluating the effect of an intervention but is still of interest. Most clinical studies have more than one secondary outcome measure.
Outcome Measure
Measure Description
Time Frame
health-related quality of life
Time Frame: Change from Baseline at discharge from 8 weeks of pulmonary rehabilitation
using the questionnaire 'A Tool to Assess Quality of life in IPF' [ATAQ-IPF]
Change from Baseline at discharge from 8 weeks of pulmonary rehabilitation

Collaborators and Investigators

This is where you will find people and organizations involved with this study.

Sponsor

Sponsor

The organization or person who initiates the study and who has authority and control over the study.
West Park Healthcare Centre

Investigators

Investigators

A researcher involved in a clinical study. Related terms include site principal investigator, site sub-investigator, study chair, study director, and study principal investigator.
  • Principal Investigator: Roger S Goldstein, West Park Healthcare Centre

Study record dates

These dates track the progress of study record and summary results submissions to ClinicalTrials.gov. Study records and reported results are reviewed by the National Library of Medicine (NLM) to make sure they meet specific quality control standards before being posted on the public website.

Study Major Dates

Study Start (Actual)

Study Start

The actual date on which the first participant was enrolled in a clinical study. The "anticipated" study start date is the date that the researchers think will be the study start date.
March 1, 2019

Primary Completion (Actual)

Primary Completion

The date on which the last participant in a clinical study was examined or received an intervention to collect final data for the primary outcome measure. Whether the clinical study ended according to the protocol or was terminated does not affect this date. For clinical studies with more than one primary outcome measure with different completion dates, this term refers to the date on which data collection is completed for all the primary outcome measures. The "anticipated" primary completion date is the date that the researchers think will be the primary completion date for the study.
April 28, 2025

Study Completion (Estimated)

Study Completion

The date on which the last participant in a clinical study was examined or received an intervention/treatment to collect final data for the primary outcome measures, secondary outcome measures, and adverse events (that is, the last participant's last visit). The "anticipated" study completion date is the date that the researchers think will be the study completion date.
May 31, 2026

Study Registration Dates

First Submitted

First Submitted

The date on which the study sponsor or investigator first submitted a study record to ClinicalTrials.gov. There is typically a delay of a few days between the first submitted date and the record's availability on ClinicalTrials.gov (the first posted date).
November 20, 2018

First Submitted That Met QC Criteria

First Submitted That Met QC Criteria

The date on which the study sponsor or investigator first submits a study record that is consistent with National Library of Medicine (NLM) quality control (QC) review criteria. The sponsor or investigator may need to revise and submit a study record one or more times before NLM's QC review criteria are met. It is the responsibility of the sponsor or investigator to ensure that the study record is consistent with the NLM QC review criteria.
November 21, 2018

First Posted (Actual)

First Posted

The date on which the study record was first available on ClinicalTrials.gov after National Library of Medicine (NLM) quality control (QC) review has concluded. There is typically a delay of a few days between the date the study sponsor or investigator submitted the study record and the first posted date.
November 26, 2018

Study Record Updates

Last Update Posted (Estimated)

Last Update Posted

The most recent date on which changes to a study record were made available on ClinicalTrials.gov. There may be a delay between when the changes were submitted to ClinicalTrials.gov by the study's sponsor or investigator (the last update submitted date) and the last update posted date.
December 4, 2025

Last Update Submitted That Met QC Criteria

Last Update Submitted That Met QC Criteria

The most recent date on which the study sponsor or investigator submitted changes to a study record that are consistent with National Library of Medicine (NLM) quality control (QC) review criteria. It is the responsibility of the sponsor or investigator to ensure that the study record is consistent with the NLM QC review criteria.
November 27, 2025

Last Verified

Last Verified

The most recent date on which the study sponsor or investigator confirmed the information about a clinical study on ClinicalTrials.gov as accurate and current. If a study with a recruitment status of recruiting; not yet recruiting; or active, not recruiting has not been confirmed within the past 2 years, the study's recruitment status is shown as unknown.
November 1, 2025

More Information

Terms related to this study

Keywords

Additional Relevant MeSH Terms

Other Study ID Numbers

Other Study ID Numbers

Identifiers or ID numbers other than the NCT number that are assigned to a clinical study by the study's sponsor, funders, or others. These numbers may include unique identifiers from other trial registries and National Institutes of Health grant numbers.
  • 1L-IPF-RCT-RG2018

Plan for Individual participant data (IPD)

Plan to Share Individual Participant Data (IPD)?

NO

Drug and device information, study documents

Studies a U.S. FDA-regulated drug product

No

Studies a U.S. FDA-regulated device product

No

product manufactured in and exported from the U.S.

No

This information was retrieved directly from the website clinicaltrials.gov without any changes. If you have any requests to change, remove or update your study details, please contact register@clinicaltrials.gov. As soon as a change is implemented on clinicaltrials.gov, this will be updated automatically on our website as well.

Clinical Trials on Lung; Disease, Interstitial, With Fibrosis

Clinical Trials on intervention -1-leg cycle training

Search Similar Trials

Sponsors and Collaborators

Medical Conditions

Drug Interventions

Conditions

Rare Diseases

Drug Interventions

Dietary Supplements

Sponsor/Collaborators

Locations

Cookie Settings

We use cookies to ensure that we give you the best experience on our website. For more details carefully read our Privacy and Cookies Policy. ...>>>You can change your preferences or withdraw your consent at any time by deleting the cookies from your website or computer as described in the policy. Please accept it and choose your preferences by ticking the corresponding boxes in the "Manage Settings" section below. Please carefully read our Terms of Service before you proceed with using any part of this website.
«Manage Settings