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Updated: Sep 13, 2025
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Conducting Respiratory Oscillometry in an Outpatient Setting
Published on: April 8, 2022
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Reference Values for Respiratory Impedance in Bulgarian Children Aged 2-8 Years Using the Forced Oscillation
Plamena Stoimenova1, Stoilka Mandadzhieva1, Blagoi Marinov1
1Department of Pathophysiology, Medical University of Plovdiv, 4002 Plovdiv, Bulgaria.
Children (Basel, Switzerland)
|July 29, 2025
Summary
Height is the primary factor influencing respiratory impedance in children aged 2-8. This finding supports using height for developing reference values for the forced oscillation technique (FOT) in early childhood.
Area of Science:
- Pediatric Pulmonology
- Respiratory Physiology
- Biomedical Engineering
Background:
- The forced oscillation technique (FOT) offers a non-invasive, effort-independent method for assessing respiratory mechanics.
- FOT is especially valuable for young children unable to perform spirometry reliably.
Purpose of the Study:
- To identify key anthropometric determinants of respiratory resistance (Rrs) and reactance (Xrs) in healthy Bulgarian children.
- To evaluate the relationship between FOT parameters and anthropometric measurements in children aged 2 to 8 years.
Main Methods:
- 100 healthy Bulgarian children (2-8 years) underwent FOT measurements at 5, 11, and 19 Hz.
- Anthropometric data (height, weight) were collected; stepwise multiple linear regression was used.
- Measurements followed American Thoracic Society/European Respiratory Society guidelines.
Main Results:
- Height was the most significant determinant of both Rrs and Xrs across all tested frequencies.
- A moderate inverse correlation was found between Rrs at 5 Hz and height (r = -0.446; p < 0.001).
- Weight influenced reactance at 5 Hz; sex and age showed no significant effect.
Conclusions:
- Height is the strongest predictor of respiratory impedance in young children.
- Prioritizing height is crucial for establishing normative FOT reference values in children under 8.
- These findings underscore the clinical utility of FOT in early childhood assessment.
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