Computer-Based Techniques for Collection of Pulmonary Function Variables duringRest and Exercise

摘要

Pulmonary function tests are routinely included as part of the experimentalprotocol for both immersion and barophysiology experiments. Typically, these tests are performed using standard spirometry, and as such suffer from time consuming data analysis and experimental error associated with such analysis. In many cases the combined effects of these limitations has meant that some valuable data often fails to come out in the analysis. One solution to this situation is to transfer these tasks to the computer. We have developed a computer-based system for both data collection and analysis, which is faster, more sensitive to minor physiological perturbations, and more precise than standard spirometry. The apparatus and programming algorithms for this system are presented in this report so that other laboratories might be able to similarly improve the methods for collection of pulmonary function data.