Multiple breath washout testing in adults with pulmonary disease and healthy controls – can fewer measurements eventually be more?

Table 1 Baseline characteristics and lung function data (analysed collective, n = 103)

		Control (n = 19)		COPD (n = 33)		Asthma (n = 32)		Sarcoidosis (n = 19)
	Unit	Mean ± SD	Range	Mean ± SD	Range	Mean ± SD	Range	Mean ± SD	Range	p-value^#
Age	years	56 ± 22	21 – 85	66 ± 10	46 – 86	59 ± 16	27 – 88	51 ± 10	37 – 79	<0.01
Height	cm	172 ± 10	157 – 198	168 ± 6	157 – 182	166 ± 10	145 – 188	174 ± 8	150 – 187	<0.05
Weight	kg	80 ± 21	50 – 132	81 ± 14	50 – 120	80 ± 17	45 – 117	76 ± 19	47 – 128	0.8
BMI	kg/m²	27.1 ± 7.6	17.5 – 49.1	28.8 ± 4.9	20.3 – 42.5	28.8 ± 6.2	16.1 – 44.5	25.6 ± 7.2	13.4 – 46.5	0.3
Smoker
Never	n (%)	15 (79)		1 (3)		14 (44)		12 (63)		<0.001
Current	n (%)	2 (11)		8 (24)		6 (19)		1 (5)
Former	n (%)	2 (11)		24 (73)		12 (38)		6 (32)
RT	n (%)	–		29 (88)		21 (66)		7 (37)		0.8
Positive	n (%)	–		8 (28)		6 (29)		1 (14)		0.8
FEV₁/VC	% pred	98 ± 8	84 – 114	73 ± 17	42 – 103	89 ± 11	58 – 110	92 ± 11	70 – 110	<0.001
FEV₁	% pred	96 ± 14	65 – 127	65 ± 20	36 – 106	86 ± 18	38 – 110	89 ± 16	57 – 112	<0.001
TLC	% pred	103 ± 10	87 – 116	110 ± 19	72 – 148	105 ± 17	65 – 141	100 ± 15	83 – 139	0.2
VC	% pred	96 ± 16	64 – 119	91 ± 23	41 – 142	98 ± 21	59 – 136	96 ± 16	67 – 135	0.5
RV	% pred	122 ± 21	82 – 177	147 ± 33	108 – 211	123 ± 19	81 – 156	112 ± 22	69 – 158	<0.001
RV/TLC	% pred	113 ± 17	86 – 152	129 ± 19	100 – 184	115 ± 14	91 – 151	105 ± 13	75 – 123	<0.001
TLCO/VA	% pred	99 ± 9	88 – 114	63 ± 18	28 – 95	83 ± 13	62 – 112	85 ± 16	44 – 122	<0.001
FRC_pleth	l	3.2 ± 0.5	2.4 – 4.0	3.8 ± 0.9	2.1 – 5.8	2.9 ± 0.8	1.7 – 4.8	3.1 ± 0.7	1.6 – 4.2	<0.001

BMI body mass index, RT reversibility testing, FEV ₁ forced expiratory volume in 1 s, VC vital capacity, TLC total lung capacity, RV residual volume, TLCO transfer factor for carbon monoxide corrected for alveolar volume, FRC _pleth functional residual capacity in plethysmography, % pred percent of predicted, SD standard deviation
^# p-values between groups were calculated using ANOVA for continuous variables or Chi-squared test for categorical variables, respectively

ISSN: 1471-2466