Abstract
Introduction People with bronchiectasis frequently request specialist advice to prepare for travelling, but there are few publications providing advice on safe travel with bronchiectasis. There is a need for recommendations on adapting everyday treatment to the requirements during travelling.
Methods A panel of 13 patient volunteers formulated questions regarding different aspects of travelling, including safety of travel, maintaining regular treatment during travel, and dealing with deterioration while away. Patient input was used to derive a questionnaire and circulated among a panel of bronchiectasis experts. Where 80% or more experts agreed on a response, a recommendation was made.
Results A total of 26 bronchiectasis experts answered the questionnaire. Recommendations were made on safety of travel, choice of destinations and activities, choice of travel insurance, carrying medications and devices, maintaining regular treatments in transport, documentation to be provided and oxygen requirements. Some statements did not reach an 80% agreement; in many cases these statements may be valid for some, but not all bronchiectasis patients.
Conclusions The general agreement was that it is considered safe for most people with bronchiectasis to travel. Careful planning and preparation with robust communication between patients and their healthcare provider prior to travel for different scenarios is fundamental to a successful journey.
Abstract
It is safe for most people with bronchiectasis to travel. Careful planning and preparation for different scenarios are fundamental to a successful journey. http://bit.ly/2yWEowA
Footnotes
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Conflict of interest: M. Shteinberg reports travel grants and speaker's fees from GSK, travel grants from Novartis, Actelion and Rafa, grants from Trudell pharma, speaker's fees from Astra Zeneca and Teva, an advisory fee from Horizon pharma, and an advisory fee and speaker's fees from Boehringer Ingelheim, outside the submitted work. M. Shteinberg is a member of the EMBARC management board, leading Work Package 6: Patient engagement activities.
Conflict of interest: B. Crossley has nothing to disclose.
Conflict of interest: T. Lavi has nothing to disclose.
Conflict of interest: S. Nadler has nothing to disclose.
Conflict of interest: J. Boyd is an employee of the ELF.
Conflict of interest: F.C. Ringshausen reports research support, consulting, lecture fees and support for (patient) educational events from Bayer HealthCare and Grifols Germany; research support, consulting, lecture fees, support for (patient) educational events and clinical trial participation from Insmed Germany; lecture and consulting fees from AstraZeneca; lecture fees, support for (patient) educational events and clinical trial participation from Chiesi; lecture fees, research support, support of (patient) educational events and clinical trial participation from Novartis; research support and support for (patient) educational events from InfectoPharm; clinical trial participation for Vertex, Parion, Celtaxsys, Corbus and GSK; research support from Polyphor; lecture fees, support for (patient) educational events and clinical trial participation from Boehringer Ingelheim; consulting and clinical trial participation for Zambon; research support and support for (patient) educational events from Baslilea; and clinical trial participation for Algipharma, all outside the submitted work.
Conflict of interest: T. Aksamit has nothing to disclose.
Conflict of interest: J.D. Chalmers reports that he was a member of a Novartis consortium during the conduct of the study. He reports research grants for COPD studies from Glaxosmithkline, Boehringer Ingelheim, AstraZeneca and Pfizer, grants and personal fees for research into bronchiectasis from Bayer Healthcare and Grifols, consulting fees from Napp and the Aradigm Corporation, and grants and personal fees from Insmed, outside the submitted work.
Conflict of interest: P. Goeminne reports personal fees and nonfinancial support from Chiesi, and personal fees from AstraZeneca, outside the submitted work.
Support statement: EMBARC is a European Respiratory Society Clinical Research Collaboration. This work has received support from the EU/EFPIA Innovative Medicines Initiative Joint Undertaking iABC grant agreement number 115721. Funding information for this article has been deposited with the Crossref Funder Registry.
Members of the ELF Bronchiectasis PAG: Tove Berg, Alan Timothy, Thomas Ruddy, Bridget Harris, Marta Almagro, Barbara Crossley, Ernie Lloyd, Annette Posthumus, Nicola Pilkington, Connie Cluderay, Sima Nadler, Pam Carter and Evan Cosgrove.
- Received May 7, 2019.
- Accepted August 3, 2019.
- Copyright ©ERS 2019
This article is open access and distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution Non-Commercial Licence 4.0.