S. Subba Rao1, G. Aruna2, K. Sateesh Kumar3, M. Neethi Chandra4
AIM & OBJECTIVES OF THE STUDY: To diagnose sub-clinical airflow obstruction in apparently healthy medical personnel, and to compare Peak Expiratory Flow Rate (PEFR) by using Spirometry and by Wright’s peak flow meter.
METHODOLOGY: About 80 apparently healthy medical students including Post Graduates, internees and medical technicians were taken in to the study, all of them had no past history of Bronchial Asthma or any allergies. Spirometry was performed by Spirowin version 0.2 and simultaneously peak expiratory flow rate by Wright’s peak flow meter was done and FVC, FEV1, FEV1/FVC, PEFR were recorded.
RESULTS: About 13 subjects (16.25%) showed moderate obstruction (FEV1 about 70%), and at that point a family history of atopies and allergies could be elicited in most of them. PEFR showed a variation -3.42 to 2.76 ltrs/sec (-205.74 to 165.62 ltrs/min) between Spirometry and Wright’s peak flow meter.
INTERPRETATION AND CONCLUSION: In spite of being medical personnel and having a family history of Bronchial Asthma and other atopies none of the 13 (16.25%) subjects with sub clinical obstruction had ever approached us for a pulmonary function test. This shows that Spirometry has to be popularized in medical personnel as well as in lay men as a means to diagnose Bronchial Asthma and COPD. Also there is difference in PEFR measured by Spirometry and Wright’s peak flow metry though the difference is not significant with a p=0.5398.
