Difficulty breathing is a common complaint and a conundrum for the diagnostician. A spirometer is a type of pulmonary function monitor PFM), a device that measures the volume of air breathed in and out by the lungs. The printed output from the device will detect two different kinds of atypical ventilation patterns, restrictive and obstructive. There are several types of spirometers that use different approaches for measuring air movement (ultrasound, water gauge, pressure transducers). Today, there are also standalone and computer-based devices.
Various lung function tests are employed to eliminate serious lung conditions such as bronchitis, asthma and emphysema. They can determine the cause of breathlessness, investigate the effects of medication or airborne contaminants on the lungs and to watch the progress of treatment. They are conducted prior to surgery on the lungs to provide a benchmark of pulmonary function.
Noted Roman physician, Claudius Galen, was the first to assess lung function. Some time during the second century AD, he got a boy to breath in and out into a bladder. Years later, people used inverted bell jars in water. Modern instruments include whole body plethysmography, peak flow meters and a device called a pneumotachometer.
The vast majority of lung conditions are not serious and are easily treatable. It is important first to rule out a serious condition underlying the breathlessness. According to the Mayo Clinic in Arizona, Florida and Minnesota, shortness of breath is defined as an intense feeling of chest tightness accompanied by a feeling of suffocation. This can occur in a single instance or it may have a more chronic pattern.
There are a handful of "red flag" signs which, when they occur at the same time as breathlessness, may indicate a serious underlying condition. These include persistent tiredness and pallor, a chronic wheeze or cough, ankle swelling, a pain that gets worse with exercise, breathlessness that worsens when lying down, any other unusual or recurring symptoms. A history of working with hazardous chemical fumes, asbestos, wood dust or in a coal mine is also something worth mentioning to the doctor.
Asthma is a chronic condition involving inflammation of the airways. It is potentially serious and may be fatal. According to the CDC in Georgia, at any one time in the United States there are 18.9 million non-institutionalized adults diagnosed with this condition. This amounts to 8.2% of the population.
Once serious causes of breathlessness have been eliminated from the differential diagnosis, many cases can be traced to one of two simple and easily remedied causes, either trigger points, also known as muscle knots, or dysfunctional respiratory habits and weak muscles. The treatment for both is safe, cost-free and easily performed by the patient. It involves a program of exercise and trigger point massage.
Invented shortly after Christ walked the Earth, the spirometer is a handy tool for diagnosing the cause of shortness of breath. It can determine the presence of abnormal ventilation, but further tests are often required to eliminate from consideration conditions like asthma, emphysema and bronchitis, among others. Most cases of breathlessness stem from an easily treatable condition, either trigger points, dysfunctional breathing patterns or a combination of the two.
Various lung function tests are employed to eliminate serious lung conditions such as bronchitis, asthma and emphysema. They can determine the cause of breathlessness, investigate the effects of medication or airborne contaminants on the lungs and to watch the progress of treatment. They are conducted prior to surgery on the lungs to provide a benchmark of pulmonary function.
Noted Roman physician, Claudius Galen, was the first to assess lung function. Some time during the second century AD, he got a boy to breath in and out into a bladder. Years later, people used inverted bell jars in water. Modern instruments include whole body plethysmography, peak flow meters and a device called a pneumotachometer.
The vast majority of lung conditions are not serious and are easily treatable. It is important first to rule out a serious condition underlying the breathlessness. According to the Mayo Clinic in Arizona, Florida and Minnesota, shortness of breath is defined as an intense feeling of chest tightness accompanied by a feeling of suffocation. This can occur in a single instance or it may have a more chronic pattern.
There are a handful of "red flag" signs which, when they occur at the same time as breathlessness, may indicate a serious underlying condition. These include persistent tiredness and pallor, a chronic wheeze or cough, ankle swelling, a pain that gets worse with exercise, breathlessness that worsens when lying down, any other unusual or recurring symptoms. A history of working with hazardous chemical fumes, asbestos, wood dust or in a coal mine is also something worth mentioning to the doctor.
Asthma is a chronic condition involving inflammation of the airways. It is potentially serious and may be fatal. According to the CDC in Georgia, at any one time in the United States there are 18.9 million non-institutionalized adults diagnosed with this condition. This amounts to 8.2% of the population.
Once serious causes of breathlessness have been eliminated from the differential diagnosis, many cases can be traced to one of two simple and easily remedied causes, either trigger points, also known as muscle knots, or dysfunctional respiratory habits and weak muscles. The treatment for both is safe, cost-free and easily performed by the patient. It involves a program of exercise and trigger point massage.
Invented shortly after Christ walked the Earth, the spirometer is a handy tool for diagnosing the cause of shortness of breath. It can determine the presence of abnormal ventilation, but further tests are often required to eliminate from consideration conditions like asthma, emphysema and bronchitis, among others. Most cases of breathlessness stem from an easily treatable condition, either trigger points, dysfunctional breathing patterns or a combination of the two.
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