Other tests measure how well gases such as oxygen get in and out of your blood. These tests include pulse oximetry and arterial blood gas tests. Another pulmonary function test, called fractional exhaled nitric oxide FeNO , measures nitric oxide, which is a marker for inflammation in the lungs.
You may have one or more of these tests to diagnose lung and airway diseases, compare your lung function to expected levels of function, monitor if your disease is stable or worsening, and see if your treatment is working. Other tests may be needed to assess lung function in infants, children, or patients who are not able to perform spirometry and lung volume tests.
Before your tests, you may be asked to not eat some foods or take certain medicines that can affect some pulmonary function test results.
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View all trials from ClinicalTrials. Visit Children and Clinical Studies to hear experts, parents, and children talk about their experiences with clinical research. Pulmonary Function Tests. Also known as Lung Function Tests. Pulmonary function tests, or PFTs, measure how well your lungs work. Editorial team. Pulmonary function tests. How the Test is Performed. Lung volume measurement can be done in two ways: The most accurate way is called body plethysmography.
You sit in a clear airtight box that looks like a phone booth. The technologist asks you to breathe in and out of a mouthpiece. Changes in pressure inside the box help determine the lung volume. Lung volume can also be measured when you breathe nitrogen or helium gas through a tube for a certain period of time.
The concentration of the gas in a chamber attached to the tube is measured to estimate the lung volume. How to Prepare for the Test. How the Test will Feel. Why the Test is Performed. Pulmonary function tests are done to: Diagnose certain types of lung disease, such as asthma , bronchitis , and emphysema Find the cause of shortness of breath Measure whether exposure to chemicals at work affects lung function Check lung function before someone has surgery Assess the effect of medicines Measure progress in disease treatment Measure the response to treatment in cardiopulmonary vascular disease.
What Abnormal Results Mean. Abnormal results usually mean that you may have chest or lung disease. Examples of these types of illnesses include: Extreme overweight Pulmonary fibrosis scarring or thickening of the lung tissue Sarcoidosis and scleroderma Muscular weakness can also cause abnormal test results, even if the lungs are normal, that is, similar to the diseases that cause smaller lungs. Alternative Names. Spirometry Match test.
Asthma Read more. Breathing Problems Read more. COPD Read more. These 2 ways may be used together and do different tests. It depends on the information that your healthcare provider is looking for:. A spirometer is a device with a mouthpiece hooked up to a small electronic machine. You sit or stand inside an airtight box to do the tests. Tidal volume VT. This is the amount of air breathed in or out during normal breathing. Minute volume MV. This is the total amount of air breathed out per minute.
Vital capacity VC. This is the total volume of air that can be breathed out after breathing in as much as you can. Functional residual capacity FRC. This is the amount of air left in lungs after breathing out normally.
Residual volume. This is the amount of air left in the lungs after breathing out as much as you can. Total lung capacity. This is the total volume of the lungs when filled with as much air as possible.
Forced vital capacity FVC. This is the amount of air breathed out forcefully and quickly after breathing in as much as you can. Forced expiratory volume FEV. This is the amount of air breathed out during the first, second, and third seconds of the FVC test. Forced expiratory flow FEF. This is the average rate of flow during the middle half of the FVC test. Peak expiratory flow rate PEFR. This is the fastest rate that you can force air out of your lungs.
Normal values for PFTs vary from person to person. The amount of air breathed in and out in your test results are compared with the average for someone of the same age, height, sex, and race.
Results are also compared with any of your past test results. You may need other tests if you have abnormal PFT measurements or if your results have changed. There are many different reasons why pulmonary function tests PFTs may be done. They are sometimes done in healthy people as part of a routine physical. They are also routinely done in certain types of work environments to ensure employee health. This might be in graphite factories or coal mines.
Or you may have PFTs if your healthcare provider needs help to diagnose you with a health problem.
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