OBJECTIVES Asian migrant workers in Korea have various ethnicities. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the difference in spirometric interpretation made using the set of third National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES III) reference equations and the relevant ethnicity-specific reference sets. METHODS Spirometry was performed on 166 migrant and 498 Korean male workers be...

One hundred subjects answered a respiratory questionnaire and underwent a physical examination, tests of pulmonary function, and three radionuclide lung-imaging procedures. The results of the radionuclide procedures were compared with each other and with pulmonary function tests and other diagnostic findings to determine their relative sensitivity for detecting evidence of early obstructive air...

Spirometric indices, lung volumes, maximum voluntary ventilation, and maximum inspiratory and expiratory pressures were measured in 44 adolescents with mild idiopathic scoliosis (spinal curvature less than 30 degrees). All were symptom free, but six (13.6%) showed a restrictive defect with forced vital capacity less than 80% of predicted. In 12 subjects (27.3%) maximum voluntary ventilation was...

INTRODUCTION Lung volume reduction surgery (LVRS) and pulmonary rehabilitation are newer options available in the treatment of advanced emphysema. We describe the progress of our first local patient to have undergone these 2 new treatment modalities. CLINICAL PICTURE A 65-year-old man with advanced emphysema, limited by crippling dyspnoea despite maximal medical therapy with inhaled bronchodi...

Vital capacity (VC), forced expiratory volume in 1 s (FEV(1)), peak expiratory flow (PEF), mean forced expiratory flow (FEV(25-75)), and maximum voluntary volume (MVV) were measured in 36 girls and 36 boys with hearing loss and compared with the same number of normal healthy children, all subjects were aged 10-16 years. They participated in an exercise test to calculate VO(2 max) in order to de...

BACKGROUND Respiratory diseases cause a considerable amount of morbidity and mortality in the world. Pulmonary function tests are important measures for the diagnosis and management of respiratory disorders. Workers in tile and ceramic industry are exposed to high amounts of respiratory pollutants. OBJECTIVE To identify the changes in spirometric parameters in a 2-year period among tile and c...

In athletes, a secure diagnos is of exercise-induced bronchoconstriction (EIB) is dependent on objective testing. Evaluating spirometric indices of airflow before and following an exercise bout is intuitively the optimal means for the diagnosis; however, this approach is recognized as having several key limitations. Accordingly, alternative indirect bronchoprovocation tests have been recommende...

RESULTS: The prevalence of the overall respiratory symptoms in the last 12 months was higher in dusty occupation workers than its prevalence in office workers. Statistically significant difference was found between the prevalence of cough in construction workers, agricultural workers and bakers, as well as between the prevalence of phlegm in construction workers, furniture manufacturers and agr...