A critical evaluation of the Mefar dosimeter

Multicentre studies of airway responsiveness (AR) are increasingly important tools in asthma epidemiology. Because comparisons of AR are made between centres it is essential that measurement techniques are accurate and standard. This study investigated the Mefar dosimeter which is currently used in the 35 centre European Community Respiratory Health Survey (ECRHS) with the next phase currently being planned. Significant differences were found in driving pressures and aerosol outputs between the three Mefar dosimeters in the laboratory. A linear relationship was also found between driving pressure and aerosol output (R2=0.96). These differences are important as they may lead to variations between centres of < or =35% in the drug dose delivered in AR measurement, which could potentially diminish the power of individual study centres to accurately detect national differences in AR. Dosimeter driving pressure and nebulizer output should be standardized in future studies of airway responsiveness. With relatively simple quality control measures in place it is believed that the Mefar dosimeter can produce reliable between-centre longitudinal data with an increase in the accuracy of these important studies.