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An Analysis To The Different Types Of Spirometers

By Dorothea Garner


Spirometers are part of the many medical tools that are used in medicine to specifically identify problems arising from breathing. They are used to record the volume of air while breathing and the rate at which air flows. This enables them to be helpful in the diagnosis of respiratory disease and in the monitoring of such patients. Discussed here are the major types of these tools.

It is important to note that the use of these devices began very long time at around 200 A. D. By a Greek doctor. His experiment used the human bladder to estimate volume. Over time the idea was refined through technological advancement and increase in knowledge to the present day sophisticated types.

The whole body plethysmograph is a device that is made to record volume of an organ or even the whole body. It does this because by detecting and measuring the amount of air or blood that is reaching a specific organ or the body in general. The pulmonary plethysmograph specifically determines functional residual volume which is air volume in the lungs after a normal expiration. The devices must be used in a small and enclosed space for accurate results.

The Pneumotachometer is another type of these devices that measures flow rate and volume of gases by using a fine mesh that is able to determine pressure difference between the lung and the outside. The major advantage of this one is that the person undertaking the test continues to breathe normal fresh air.

The incentive spirometers are a very special group of devices which in addition to the normal measuring of lung volumes, they have the additional ability of being able to support the functioning of the lungs. They therefore mostly used in those patients that are very sick or patient who have had surgeries involving the chest and heart. The equipments will help reduce build up of fluids in the lungs.

Peak expiratory design of these instruments is a small device that is hand help by the user. It measures the maximum speed of expiration. It is very valuable especially for monitoring patients with obstructive pulmonary conditions. It can also be used to diagnose these forms of diseases.

The electric spirometers measure air as it passes through disposable air channels. The channels are able to detect the rate of air passing through them by using ultrasonic transducers that are sensitive to pressure changes within the channels. They are very accurate and efficient in their reading with few error chances because it is automatic. Due to the disposable channels, it is also good for hygiene reasons.

A Windmill-type which is also known as a Spiropet is used specifically for the measure of forced vital capacity. It has broad measuring range to relatively very high volumes. It employs the principles of water displacement and must be held in a horizontal plane while being used because it had rotating disks which can be displaced.

The last groups of spirometers which are also the latest to be discovered are the tilt-compensated types. They have the advantage of being flexible enough to be tilted to accommodate the position of the person undertaking the procedure. They are mostly used in horizontal alignment.




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