This page provides copies of the clinical trials as well as published articles in medical journals about the effectiveness of the Buteyko Method of breathing retraining. This page is currently being updated.
Clinical Trials
1 Buteyko breathing techniques in asthma: a blinded randomised trial
Simon D Bowler, Amanda Green and Charles A Mitchell
Medical Journal of Australia 1998; 169:575-578
2 Buteyko Breathing Technique for asthma: an effective intervention
Patrick McHugh, Fergus Aitcheson, Bruce Duncan, Frank Houghton
Journal of the New Zealand Medical Association, 12-December-2003, Vol 116 No 1187
3 “Health Education: Does the Buteyko Institute Method make a difference?”
Jill McGowan, Education and training consultant in Asthma Management.
Thorax Vol 58, suppl III, page 28, December 2003.
4 A Randomised Controlled Trial of the Buteyko Technique for Asthma Management
Robert L. Cowie, Diane P. Conley, Margot F. Underwood, Patricia G. Reader
Respiratory Medicine May 2008 (Vol. 102, Issue 5, Pages 726-732)
5 Study explains success of Buteyko
Megan Howe
Australian Doctor, p 20, 11 May 2001
6 Prevalence of dysfunctional breathing in patients treated for asthma in primary care: a cross sectional survey
M Thomas, RK McKinley, E Freeman, C Foy
British Medical Journal 2001;322:1098-1100 (5 May 2001)
7 Bronchodilators appear to increase inflammation, potentially worsening asthma, heart
failure, and lupus, study findings suggest.
J Allergy Clin Immunol 2006
8 Breathing exercises for asthma: a randomised controlled trial.
M Thomas, R K McKinley, S Mellor, G Watkin, E Holloway, J Scullion, D E Shaw, A Wardlaw, D Price, I Pavord
Thorax 2009; 64:55-61
Published Articles
Asthma Related
Breathing exercises and specifically the Buteyko method are cited in the updated 2016 SIGN 153 – British Guideline on the management of asthma.
Recommendations for breathing exercises are on pages 61-2. The document can be accessed via the following link.
A report by the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality, AHRQ, for the United States Institute of Health (NIH) finds Buteyko delivers substantial reductions in symptoms and medication usage for asthmatics.
This study concluded that the Buteyko Method of breathing retraining produced “benefits in terms of reduced symptoms and bronchodilator usage” for people suffering with asthma.
Buteyko Breathing Technique for asthma: an effective intervention
38 asthmatics participated in this study. One group was taught the Buteyko Method of breathing retraining and the other group was taught conventional asthma education and relaxation techniques.
The trial showed an 85% reduction in inhaled relievers and a 50% reduction in inhaled steroids for the Buteyko Method group. The control group showed a 37% reduction in reliever medication and no change in their preventer medication after six months.
‘The Buteyko Breathing Technique is a safe and efficacious asthma management technique. BBT has clinical and potential pharmaco-economic benefits that merit further study.’
Sleep apnoea related
A comprehensive survey on breathing retraining for sleep apnoea
This survey assessed over 11,000 people with sleep apnoea who completed the Buteyko method of breathing retraining. The majority of the participants improved their sleep quality and reduced symptoms associated with sleep apnoea.
Clinical Review: Sleep apnoea – A survey of breathing retraining
The Australian Nursing Journal published this article in 2012. It presents the clinical experience of Buteyko practitioners treating breathing retraining to sleep apnoea clients. Around 80% of clients using CPAP machines to help them breathe at night were able to cease using them; clients also experienced a reduction in snoring and low energy levels during the day.
BIBH published the full study here.
Rhinitis related
Buteyko shows 71% reduction in rhinitis symptoms
A study was done at Limerick Regional Hospital in Ireland on the effectiveness of the Buteyko method of breathing retraining on the nasal symptoms of those with asthma.
Sinonasal obstruction symptom evaluation (SNOT) scores showed a 71% reduction of rhinitis symptoms in asthma at three month follow up from the 26 patients included in the study.
View report here.
Facial development and mouth breathing
Read here about a collection of studies linking the development of the facial structure to mouth breathing. Discusses the development of the jaw, crowding of the teeth and sinuses as well as the development of the long face syndrome.
View report here.
