Asthma affects 26 million Americans, 6.2 million of whom are children, and the number is rising. Over the last 20 years, the incidence of asthma has doubled. Many cases of asthma are brought on by respiratory allergies, which is why it’s so important to be treated if you suffer from hay fever or other airborne allergies. In fact, recent research has shown that asthma may be prevented if allergies are treated early enough with allergy shots.
Canton Asthma & Allergy has the capability of performing not only the standard spirometry test performed in asthma/allergy offices, but also full spirometry including DLCO and total lung capacity. Using a machine in our Canton office we refer to as “Bertha”, patients perform this test in an exam room by breathing into a mouthpiece. This testing is not available in most allergy and asthma offices, and provides extra data to assist our clinicians in the workup of lung diseases other than asthma. We also work closely with multiple pulmonary offices diagnosing, counseling, and treating patients, with bronchiectasis and frequent lung infections.
Spirometry (spy-ROM-uh-tree) is a common office test used to assess how well your lungs work by measuring how much air you inhale, how much you exhale and how quickly you exhale. Spirometry is used to diagnose asthma, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) and other conditions that affect breathing.
DLCO This test involves measuring the difference between inspired and expired carbon monoxide. The measurement of DLCO is affected by atmospheric pressure and/or altitude. Expected DLCO is also affected by the amount of hemoglobin, age and sex.
Total Lung Capacity, measures the volume of air contained in the lungs at the end of a maximum inhale.
