Results of spirometry test

[Kittyjack]

I honestly have not got a clue what they mean but I can see where it says spirometric lung age XaY55 90 years. Can any one please give me a clue I am totally lost. Kind regards Kitty x

[joyful4u]

Hi, I wanted to respond, but unfortumately I don't know a thing about that test. I've never had one. What I had was a pulmonary function test. I would, however, like to know the difference between the two. I hope someone will be able to put your mind at ease. God bless, Terri

[Kittyjack in reply to joyful4u]

Many thanks Terri x

[anymouse]

To try to make the test results easier to understand they do the lung age thing. It is very inaccurate, a gross oversimplification. Basically they are saying you have the lungs of a 90 year old. But it really is next to meaningless. My lung age was something like 130 yrs.

Since this is a COPD forum, I am assuming you have been diagnosed with an obstructive disease, not a restrictive one. In that context, the number that matters the most is the FEV1% predicted. That is a measurement of your obstruction determined by how well you can exhale and compared to a healthy peer. If your FEV1% is 50%, you exhaled only 50% of what is expected for someone your gender, height, weight, age, and race. That is one number used to determine your stage.

The spriometry test is done as part of a pulmonary function test. Usually it is the first part where they have you exhale as hard as you can. The PFT also tests a couple of other things.

Hope that helps

[joyful4u in reply to anymouse]

Thanks for sharing this explanation. Is the Spirometry test sometimes done apart from the pft? Also, you mentioned the different stages of copd. Do you know the range for each one? I like to glean as much knowledge as possible. Fortunately I was diagnosed with mild copd, emphysema & asthma. My repeat pft will be next April. I'm curious to how it will compare with the 1st one.

[anymouse in reply to joyful4u]

Yes the spriometry can be done alone. But a pulmonary function test is usually 3 tests one of which will be spriometry.

I don't know about asthma and that really does change things and I think can really influence the interpretation of the the test results. This is a GOLD 2018 diagnosis guide but it covers obstructive disease not restrictive (asthma). It explains the stages. It is no longer just based on FEV1% predicted. This document explains it. goldcopd.org/wp-content/upl...

There is no real way to predict what next year might show. Some people are stable for decades, it depends on so many factors. The best thing you can do is to talk to your doctors about exercise. Exercise matters in a lot of ways. If your heart, your cholesterol, sugar, etc are all in reasonably good shape it will be much easier to manage and treat your COPD. Common sense really but worth mentioning, its that important.

[Kittyjack in reply to anymouse]

Thank you so much I am back to see Dr on September 5th so I am going to ask her to explain even though I have lost quite a bit of faith in her,she made the appointment for me to see how I am getting on with beata blockers. Many thanks and hope you are well x

[Kittyjack in reply to Kittyjack]

I wonder if I could take a photo of results and add to here for help x

[anymouse in reply to Kittyjack]

You could upload a photo. I have seen people do that before, sometimes they are hard to see but worth a try.

[anymouse in reply to Kittyjack]

This is a link to a series of videos that explain pulmonary function tests, spriometry is part of that. They are pretty good.

youtu.be/WyhOJR8btCs(Not working as expected?)

[joyful4u in reply to anymouse]

Thx for adding this wealth of information. I've been doing my best to exercise regularly & I drink a lot of water throughout the day. All we can do is our best. Have a good day. Terri

[Hidden in reply to anymouse]

Asthma is obstructive I have emphysema and asthma

[anymouse]

All the numbers are important to a pulmonologist. They (and by they I mean the GOLD, ATS, etc) put the emphasis on FEV1% because it provides context unlike the standalone FEV1 liter measurement. Keep in mind the FEV1% factors in age, weight, height, gender, and race.

As we age we all lose lung function (among other things). A healthy 20 yr old will have much better lung function than a healthy 70 yr old. The % predicted takes that into account. A tall man will have much larger lungs than a short woman, the % predicted takes that into account as well as other physical attributes of a person. To say a person’s FEV1 is 2 liters is not that meaningful unless you know how old are they, how tall are they, are they a normal weight, etc. To say a persons FEV1% is 50% immediately paints a bigger more informative picture.