Definition - What does spirometry test report mean?
A spirometry test report is used for pulmonary analysis in patients to determine lung functionality. The test reports are formatted as graphs with variable factors arranged in columns that allows physicians to interpret results easily by cross-referencing between normal test values and actual test values from their patients. Spirometry test reports consists of a basic formula to calculate measurements including forced expiratory volume in one second (FEV1), forced vital capacity (FVC), and the FEV1-to-FVC ratio, which represents the total percentage of air released from the lungs in one second. This is the standard model applied when observing for abnormalities or changes in the lungs prior to making a proper diagnosis.
SureHire explains spirometry test report
Spirometry test reports employ a standard criteria based on demographic factors including a patient’s age, height, gender, and ethnicity for interpreting test results. Physicians account for these test variables on the fact that all people have distinct physiological characteristics that determine the size of the lungs. For instance, men tend to have proportionately larger lungs than women, while taller people generally have bigger lungs than people of shorter stature. The spirometry test reports include biological and physiological data combined with any deviating information to suggest potentially latent health conditions in the patient.
Although the test report is not designed for identifying obstructive and/or restrictive conditions like asthma, emphysema, or asbestosis, it can serve as an effective warning when signs and symptoms appear nonexistent. Normal and abnormal values are measured by a percentage score with test results showing the predicted range (the normal range) and the observed range (actual test range) for comparative analysis. A lower limit of normal (LLN) is considered the baseline minimum at the observed range level for a patient to still test as normal.
