Patients often say, “Doctor, it takes me a long time to get well every time I have a cold, am I in too bad a shape?” Some patients say that they are like a spittoon jar, “I can’t stop spitting up phlegm”, and there are also middle-aged and elderly patients who have chest tightness and shortness of breath when they climb stairs or walk a little distance, and wonder – is this because they are getting older? At this point, doctors will recommend that they do a pulmonary function test. Over the years, pulmonary function tests have become increasingly popular, but the awareness of proper understanding and proper cooperation with doctors in carrying out pulmonary function tests has yet to be strengthened.
1. What exactly is the pulmonary function test for?
The “gold standard” for the diagnosis of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease is the pulmonary function test. At present, there are two main types of instruments used to test lung function, the small and easy to carry is called “small lung”, and the larger and fully functional is called “large lung”, patients suspected of slow lung disease, it is recommended to “large lung The data of the “large lung” is recommended for patients with suspected chronic obstructive pulmonary disease. Taking the “large lung” as an example, pulmonary function tests can check these items: lung volume, pulmonary ventilation, pulmonary ventilation, airway resistance, airway responsiveness, exercise cardiopulmonary function, and respiratory muscle strength.
2. Is spirometry the same as spirometry?
For a long time, “spirometry” has been a familiar concept that appears frequently in school physicals. Pulmonary function tests also require “blowing”, but spirometry is only a small part of the pulmonary function test. In layman’s terms, the lung function test is to see if the lung is flexible (normal lungs are like sponges, very soft), whether the size of the airway is open, whether the airway is very sensitive, whether the oxygen inhaled into the air is enough for the whole body, whether the respiratory muscles on the thorax are strong, how much lung function can meet the exercise load …… an inhalation and an exhalation, closely related When lung function is impaired, breathing becomes less easy, and it is between breaths that doctors capture the changes in the patient’s lungs.
3. Is there radiation in the pulmonary function test?
Pulmonary function tests are physical tests that do not cause any damage to the body and are painless and uncomfortable. X-rays and CTs can be imagined as an art photograph, in which we can only see the external characteristics of men and women, young and old, long and short hair, and whether they wear glasses or not, but the character and ability of the person in the photograph are never visible. The lung function test is to further understand the character and function of the lungs. Therefore, X-rays and CTs are not a substitute for pulmonary function tests, and the combination of the two is the only way to get a clear understanding of the lungs.
4. What conditions require pulmonary function tests
Pulmonary function tests should be included in your annual health check-up for those over 40 years old.
If you have smoking, recurrent cough, coughing, chest tightness, shortness of breath, family history of slow-onset lung, seasonal coughing and wheezing episodes, or abnormal chest X-ray or CT any of these eight items, it is even more important to have your lung function tested to be careful that slow-onset lung has crept up on you.
5. How to do pulmonary function test
To reduce the number of trips to and from the hospital and improve the efficiency of medical treatment, many hospitals have implemented the convenient policy of “do it as you go and get the report immediately after doing it” for outpatients. If you are having a bronchial diastolic test or a full set of pulmonary function tests, please bring your medication “Ventolin” to the pulmonary function room, and then just relax and follow the doctor’s orders to complete the “inhalation”, “exhalation”, and “forceful inhalation”. Next, just relax and follow the doctor’s orders, complete the actions such as “inhale”, “exhale” and “exhale”, and wait for a few moments afterward to get the pulmonary function report.
The above is a comprehensive introduction to pulmonary function tests, if you have questions, welcome to leave a message in the comments section.