At the Florida Lung, Asthma & Sleep Specialists, we know that the key to coping with COPD is to catch it in its earliest stages before it causes serious damage and permanenant injury to your lungs. Are you finding yourself short of breath?

Are small chores  like making the bed, becoming a sudden challenge to your breathing? At Florida Lung Doctors and other pulmonary specialists, there’s an “app” for that! Well, it’s not really an “app,” for your i-phone; it’s a test for your chest.  “Spirometry” is  a simple, non-invasive test that will indicate a COPD diagnosis.  (You can check out our John s Hopkins references here.)

“Spirometry” is a lung function test that simply measures the amount of air you can blow out of your lungs, plus how quickly you can blow it out. “These measurements, taken with a machine called a spirometer, help the doctor determine how well your lungs are working and whether you may have COPD.”

We have featured informative material on COPD in previous blogs, and we hope you will click here to refer to more details for current research about this disease.

A Simple, Painless Process:

Your lungs do not have to “study” to take this test!

1. You will draw in your deepest breath.

2. Your technician will instruct you to then blow it out, hard and fast.

3. Next you will blow your breath into a hygenic, disposable mouthpiece attached to a tube which is connected to the “spirometer.” You will try this process three times.

4. The After compiling the results and comparing them with the “predicted values of a healthy individual of the same age, sex, height and race,” and reading the results, your doctor can make an assessment about your COPD diagnosis.

Meaningful Measurements: The spirometer provides several key measurements that will determine whether you have COPD and its severity.

• FVC (Forced Vital Capacity) Basically, this is a measure of the total volume of air you blow out of your lungs.

• FEV1 (Forced Expiratory Volume) This term indicates the measures the amount of air expelled from the lungs in the first second of a forced exhalation.

Specifics:  From the spirometer readings, your doctor can detect the degree of involvement.

1.  Measurements of 50 to 80 percent of predicted value indicates moderate COPD;

2.  A measurement of 30 to 49 percent means severe COPD; Sadly, A measurement of 30 percent or less indicates very severe COPD.

3.  For more information, refer to some of our previous material on this subject by clicking here.

We have a second important story for you today, A Bonus Feature:  Because Breasts are very close to chests, we would be remiss if we did not mention that the Lung Doctors recongnize that October is National Breast Cancer Awareness Month. We salute those organization who spend time, talent and treasure in the cause of defeating this insidious disease.

On the fighting front is the NBCAM. Here in Orlando, the Lung Doctors remind you that “Although October is designated as National Breast Cancer Awareness Month, NBCAM is dedicated to raising awareness and educating individuals about breast cancer throughout the year.” We encourage you to help the various charities in volved in the fight all year long,not simply in October.

We invite you to check out  their special events for the remainder of October, at this site. The Lung Doctors encourage you to take this month as an opportunity to learn more about breast cancer, breast health, and the latest research developments available.

There are too many wonderful organizations involved in this movement to list here, but we honor them all. If you know of someone who has been recently diagnosed, we recommend that you advise them to visit a good source of  breast cancer information, aptly named “Beyond The Shock,” by clicking here.

Our strongest “Pink Power”  advice is to keep your mammogram appointments regularly. Do you know that mammograms remain the best tests doctors have “to find breast cancer early, sometimes up to three years before it can be felt?  Read more at the Center For Disease Control by clicking here.

When their breast cancer is found early, many women go on to live long and healthy lives.”  After you have kept your mammogram appointment, make yourself feel good by buying something at this amazing Breast Cancer Awareness shop by clicking here. From pens to scarves, to coffee mugs, to jewelry everything they have is inspiring. We know you’ll look “Pretty in Pink!”
We always thank our readers, and this week is no exception;  we hope you make it a habit to visit The Lung Doctor’s Blog often.