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Short-term variations in oscillatory and spirometric lung function indices among school children
K L Timonen1, J T Randell, R O Salonen
1Unit of Environmental Epidemiology, National Public Health Institute Kuopio, Finland.
The European Respiratory Journal
|January 1, 1997
Summary
Respiratory resistance measured by forced oscillation technique (Rrs,FOT) shows greater variation than spirometry in children with chronic respiratory symptoms. However, Rrs,FOT is more sensitive for detecting short-term respiratory changes, despite lower day-to-day repeatability.
Area of Science:
- Pediatric Pulmonology
- Respiratory Physiology
- Diagnostic Techniques
Background:
- Chronic respiratory symptoms in children necessitate reliable lung function assessment.
- Forced oscillation technique (Rrs,FOT) offers an alternative to spirometry for measuring respiratory resistance.
- Understanding the variability of Rrs,FOT is crucial for its clinical application in pediatric respiratory monitoring.
Purpose of the Study:
- To compare the immediate, daily, and weekly variation of Rrs,FOT with spirometric indices in children aged 7-12 with chronic respiratory symptoms.
- To evaluate the sensitivity of Rrs,FOT and spirometry in detecting changes following an exercise challenge test.
Main Methods:
- Lung function measurements (Rrs,FOT and spirometry) were conducted on 19 children over 4 days across two consecutive weeks.
- Measurements were repeated three times daily at the same time.
- An exercise challenge test was performed on 12 children to assess dynamic changes in respiratory parameters.
Main Results:
- Intrasubject coefficients of variation (CoVs) for Rrs,FOT were generally larger than for spirometric indices, except for immediately repeated measurements.
- After applying a reliability index, immediate Rrs,FOT variation (9.1%) became comparable to airflow indices at specific lung volumes.
- Rrs,FOT demonstrated greater sensitivity to changes during the exercise challenge test compared to spirometry, but showed higher day-to-day (16.0%) and weekly variation.
Conclusions:
- While Rrs,FOT exhibits higher variability than most spirometric indices over days and weeks, its immediate measurement reliability is comparable.
- Rrs,FOT is a sensitive tool for detecting short-term functional changes in the pediatric respiratory system, particularly after exercise.
- The lower repeatability of Rrs,FOT over longer periods may limit its use in long-term follow-up studies of pediatric respiratory conditions.