Abstract: An external pulmonary brace has a pair of spaced brackets receiving and surrounding the tricep area of a user's upper arms, the brackets being connected to a central brace portion which extends across and substantially covers the user's chest. The central section and the brackets may be in the form of a unitary element, or the central section may be of elastic material joined to the brackets. By undertaking a downward movement of the upper arms toward the sides of the body, the patient may apply selected amounts of pressure to the chest area as needed to assist coughing or expectoration.