BACKGROUND: Pulmonary rehabilitation (PR) is an essential element of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) management. However, access to conventional face-to-face PR programmes is limited. METHODS: This multicentre, randomised controlled trial recruited patients with COPD from 18 sites in Germany and Switzerland, aiming to evaluate the impact of 12 weeks of a mobile app (intervention group; IVG) on quality of life, measured by COPD Assessment Test (CAT), and exercise capacity, assessed by 1-minute-sit-to-stand-test (1MSTST), compared with a control group (CTG) receiving 'enhanced standard-of-care'. RESULTS: 278 patients were included in the study with a median age of 65 years (IQR 60-70) and forced expiratory volume in 1 s 48% predicted (IQR 37-60). In the intention-to-treat analysis at week 12, CAT improved from baseline by median -4 points versus -3 points in the IVG versus CTG groups, respectively (difference: 0 points (95% CI: -1, 2); p=0.7); 1MSTST improved by 1 vs 2 repetitions, respectively (difference: 1 repetition (95% CI: 0, 2); p=0.12)). In a subset of the IVG, with patients grouped by application adherence (
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