Spirometry in Childhood Asthma

"What is Spirometry and Why is It Important?..."

Have you heard of spirometry and children with asthma?  The use of spirometry in childhood asthma is unfortunately limited.

........The method itself is extremely useful, but there are several problems restricting its use primarily to adults and teenagers.  It's use is not advised younger children.

However, it can be still be useful in determining the severity of childhood asthma - if only the child is not too young.

 What is spirometry?

Spirometry is the most common of all PTFs (Pulmonary Function Tests). It measures amount and speed of exhaling air. It is clear that the information provided by the spirometry test would be extremely useful in treating childhood asthma.

The patient is asked to take as deep a breath as he or she can, then to exhale into the spirometer - as hard and as long as he or she can.

The patient during the test is often asked to use a nose clip to prevent air from escaping by way of the patient's nose. Spirometry showed itself useful early in the history of medicine (the history of spirometers date back to the 17th century), and it is still one of the most useful tools in detecting and determining the severity of asthma.

 Spirometry in childhood asthma - The usefulness of the method

The data provided by spirometry gives a doctor a unique opportunity to determine how severe the asthma is. This works extremely well for adult and teenager asthma, letting the doctor choose the best treatment and assess the danger. Unfortunately, in case of childhood asthma things are much more difficult.

 Spirometry in childhood asthma - Its limitations

The first and the most important limitation of using spirometry in childhood asthma is the difference in the development of child's lungs. It is next to impossible to determine if the results show that lungs and airways are just not fully developed yet, or if it is a sign of asthma.

What's more, in the case of younger children (under 6 years) the speed of exhaling air is too slow for most existing equipment.

Even if using spirometry in childhood asthma evaluation is theoretically possible, its practical use is very limited. However this quickly changes with age.  The test is useless for a 5-year-old child is mildly useful for a 10-year-old and becomes a wonderful tool in asthma detection and treatment if used on a teenager.

Generally, the older the patient, the more useful spirometry is in detection of childhood asthma.

Though limited in usefullness. spirometry in childhood asthma can not be ignored.

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   Spirometry in Childhood Asthma