Functional definitions of asthma and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease

Abstract

Function pulmonary tests are important tools to assessment the respiratory health and clinical diseases. Spirometry, carbon monoxide of diffusion lung capacity, hyper-responsiveness and measurement of volume and resistance have a variety of application in the diagnosis, pre-operative and monitoring of respiratory disease, as chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) and asthma. Asthma is characterized by hyper-responsivity, inflammation and variable obstruction in airways. However, spite of alteration in lung function, the diagnosis of asthma is based on clinical symptoms. These findings as cough, wheeze, and dyspnea are unspecific and can represent other diseases, in these cases the measurement of lung function can help in the diagnosis. Pulmonary function testing are very helpful in assessing the physiologic consequences of the chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) and asthma, where the hallmark is a decrease in expiratory flow rates. Spirometry is the most widely used test for evaluating and treating patients. Tests more complex including lung volumes and cardiopulmonary exercise testing provides useful information about the overall lung function and functional capacity that can be fundamental in categorizing and staging of these diseases.