New Year’s Resolutions for a better PFT lab
It’s a tradition to come up with New Year’s resolution in order to improve ourselves. How about some resolutions to improve our labs? 1. Review and update the procedure manual…
It’s a tradition to come up with New Year’s resolution in order to improve ourselves. How about some resolutions to…
31 Dec 2016 December 31, 2016 by Richard Johnston • Leave a comment
Is there airway obstruction when the FEV1 is normal?
I’ve been reviewing the literature on PFT interpretation lately and in doing so I ran across one of the issues that’s bothered me for a while. Specifically, my lab has…
I’ve been reviewing the literature on PFT interpretation lately and in doing so I ran across one of the issues…
29 Dec 2016 December 29, 2016 by Richard Johnston • Leave a comment
Fick Cardiac Output
We’ve all run across the Fick equation for cardiac output at one time or another. There are very limited circumstances when we’d ever get to use it but at the…
We’ve all run across the Fick equation for cardiac output at one time or another. There are very limited circumstances…
18 Dec 2016 December 18, 2016 by Richard Johnston • Leave a comment
N2 washout troubleshooting
I was recently contacted by the manager of a lab that was having problems with their N2 washout lung volumes. Specifically, their N2 washout lung volumes (FRC in particular) were…
I was recently contacted by the manager of a lab that was having problems with their N2 washout lung volumes.…
11 Dec 2016 December 11, 2016 by Richard Johnston • Leave a comment
Estimated Lung Age (ELA)
Cigarette smoking raises the probability that an individual will get lung cancer, chronic bronchitis and/or emphysema (among many other things). Nicotine is addictive and smokers often need signifi…
Cigarette smoking raises the probability that an individual will get lung cancer, chronic bronchitis and/or emphysema (among many other things).…
27 Nov 2016 November 27, 2016 by Richard Johnston • Leave a comment
Flow-volume loops are timeless
Recently I’ve been trying to help somebody whose spirometry results changed drastically depending on where their tests were performed. When their spirometry was performed on an office spirome…
Recently I’ve been trying to help somebody whose spirometry results changed drastically depending on where their tests were performed. When…
20 Nov 2016 November 20, 2016 by Richard Johnston • Leave a comment
IC, ERV and the FVC
While reviewing reports today I ran across a couple of lung volume tests from different patients where the SVC was over a liter less than the FVC. Suboptimal SVC measurement…
While reviewing reports today I ran across a couple of lung volume tests from different patients where the SVC was…
13 Nov 2016 November 13, 2016 by Richard Johnston • Leave a comment
The dual tracer gas single-breath washout (DTG-SBW) and ventilation inhomogeneity
I’ve been interested in ventilation inhomogeneity for a while and as ways to measure it I have looked at VA/TLC ratios, the Lung Clearance Index (LCI) and the phase III…
I’ve been interested in ventilation inhomogeneity for a while and as ways to measure it I have looked at VA/TLC…
30 Oct 2016 October 30, 2016 by Richard Johnston • Leave a comment
Why DIY CPET reports?
When I first started performing CPETs in the 1970’s a patient’s exhaled gas was collected at intervals during the test in Douglas bags and I had a worksheet that I’d…
When I first started performing CPETs in the 1970’s a patient’s exhaled gas was collected at intervals during the test…
23 Oct 2016 October 23, 2016 by Richard Johnston • Leave a comment
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