A Pulmonary function test can be carried out on young children and quickly leads the doctor to a reliable diagnosis in the case of breathing problems or tightness in the bronchi. The pulmonary function test is mainly carried out in specialist practices for pulmonary and bronchial medicine (pulmonologist), but also by general internists or general practitioners.
What is a lung function test?
Of the Pulmonary function test, also known as spirometry, provides information on the current condition of both lungs and bronchi within a few minutes.
The pulmonary function test is used both for diagnosis and for monitoring the course and therapy of existing lung diseases. Depending on the clinical picture, it can even happen that patients have to undergo such a lung function test several times a week.
Function, effect & goals
Whether there is a possible weakness of the lungs, an existing lung disease is progressing or has come to a standstill can be determined from the measured values Pulmonary function tests can be interpreted safely and quickly.
Depending on the gender, age and size of a patient, the lung function test provides individual information about the fitness and health of the lungs. Based on the measured values, it is possible to read very quickly whether, for example, years of inhalative smoking has already led to permanent damage to the lungs.
The pulmonary function test allows precise conclusions to be drawn about the course and stage of chronic lung diseases such as asthma, bronchitis or emphysema, in particular, on the basis of the values determined.
An initial diagnosis of these diseases is also possible using the parameters of the lung function test. Over the years, the medical industry has developed a wide variety of devices to enable lung function tests to be carried out safely and easily. Simple spirometers for quick checking of the so-called vital capacity are just as much a part of it as technically sophisticated devices that look like a telephone booth.
As a so-called body pletysmography, this special and extensive lung function test is reserved for larger pulmonary practices and medical centers. The lung function test is carried out by connecting the patient to the spirometer through a mouthpiece. Before the actual test is carried out, nasal breathing is prevented by a special nose clip so that the patient can actually only breathe through the mouth.
The actual lung function test can only begin when perfect test conditions have been created. A calibration is therefore required for each measurement in order to adjust the spirometer to the patient's individual breathing rhythm. Special software detects irregularities and includes them later in the test evaluation so that the doctor receives reliable measured values at all times.
In various breathing maneuvers, the patient is urged to breathe in and out deeply or to hold his breath. The lung function test measures both the volume and the force of the exhaled air. If the lung function test is assessed, the decisive factor is the relationship between two specific values. These are the vital capacity and the one-second air.
Risks, side effects & dangers
Vital capacity is the maximum amount of air that can be breathed out again after the deepest possible inhalation. The term one-second air is understood to mean a volume of air that can be forced out within one second.
Of the Pulmonary function test now uses these two parameters to determine the ratio of the individual one-second air value to the normal value of the vital capacity for the corresponding age group and depending on gender and size. The lung function test shows the ratio of both values in percent. The percentage value determined now only needs to be compared with the table of normal values in order to be able to make a reliable statement about the lung function of a patient.
According to the different lung capacities, the normal values for men and women are different. In patients with chronic lung or heart disease, the lung function test is carried out at regular intervals in consultation with the attending physician. With this therapy and progress control, the medication used can also be constantly adjusted.
The lung function test is therefore a very important tool for diagnosis and therapy in practice. The measured values are entered in a patient diary. In patients with chronic lung diseases, the lung function test can also be carried out at home using a so-called peak flow meter. As soon as the readings deteriorate, the doctor must be consulted.
Typical & common lung diseases
- COPD (chronic obstructive pulmonary disease)
- to cough
- Lung cancer
- Pulmonary edema
- Pulmonary fibrosis
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