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Research ArticleOriginal Research

A Cleaning and Calibration Method for the SpiroPro Portable Spirometer's Pneumotachometer Tube in a Remote Field Study

Matthew R Baldwin, William Checkley, Robert A Wise, Subarna K Khatry, Steve C LeClerq and Keith P West
Respiratory Care April 2010, 55 (4) 443-452;
Matthew R Baldwin
Division of Pulmonary, Allergy, and Critical Care, College of Physicians and Surgeons, Columbia University, New York, New York.
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William Checkley
Division of Pulmonary and Critical Care, School of Medicine, The Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore, Maryland.
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  • For correspondence: [email protected]
Robert A Wise
Division of Pulmonary and Critical Care, School of Medicine, The Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore, Maryland.
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Subarna K Khatry
Nepal Nutrition Intervention Project, Sarlahi, National Society for the Prevention of Blindness, Kathmandu, Nepal.
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Steve C LeClerq
Center for Human Nutrition, Department of International Health, Bloomberg School of Public Health, The Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore, Maryland.
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Keith P West Jr
Center for Human Nutrition, Department of International Health, Bloomberg School of Public Health, The Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore, Maryland.
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Abstract

BACKGROUND: We developed a systematic method of cleaning and calibration-checking for the pneumotachometer tube of the SpiroPro portable spirometer; this method maximized spirometry accuracy in a population-based study in a remote area of Nepal.

METHODS: We tested 10 factory-calibrated pneumotachometer tubes. Each use consisted of a full set of spirometry maneuvers, per the American Thoracic Society (ATS) spirometry criteria.

RESULTS: The pneumotachometers remained accurate, per the ATS criteria, for 5–9 disinfections, but began to drift toward inaccuracy after the first disinfection. All the pneumotachometers had become inaccurate, per the ATS criteria, after 10 disinfections.

CONCLUSIONS: In a remote field setting the SpiroPro pneumotachometer tube can be cleaned and reused 5–9 times before it becomes inaccurate per the ATS criteria. Rigorous rinsing in distilled water and repeated calibration checks, at various flows up to 12 L/s, are essential for precise and accurate spirometry with the SpiroPro. Reusing the SpiroPro pneumotachometer in a remote setting may impose measurement bias. Single use of SpiroPro pneumotachometers, albeit more costly, will provide better data.

  • spirometry, portable
  • pneumotachometer
  • calibration
  • accuracy
  • disinfection

Footnotes

  • Correspondence: William Checkley MD PhD, Division of Pulmonary and Critical Care, Department of Medicine, School of Medicine, The Johns Hopkins University, 1830 Monument Street, Fifth Floor, Baltimore MD 21205. E-mail: wcheckl1{at}jhmi.edu.
  • The research was partly supported by the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, Seattle, Washington (grant 614) and the Sight and Life Research Institute, Baltimore, Maryland.

  • Copyright © 2010 by Daedalus Enterprises Inc.
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Respiratory Care: 55 (4)
Respiratory Care
Vol. 55, Issue 4
1 Apr 2010
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A Cleaning and Calibration Method for the SpiroPro Portable Spirometer's Pneumotachometer Tube in a Remote Field Study
Matthew R Baldwin, William Checkley, Robert A Wise, Subarna K Khatry, Steve C LeClerq, Keith P West
Respiratory Care Apr 2010, 55 (4) 443-452;

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A Cleaning and Calibration Method for the SpiroPro Portable Spirometer's Pneumotachometer Tube in a Remote Field Study
Matthew R Baldwin, William Checkley, Robert A Wise, Subarna K Khatry, Steve C LeClerq, Keith P West
Respiratory Care Apr 2010, 55 (4) 443-452;
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Keywords

  • spirometry, portable
  • pneumotachometer
  • calibration
  • accuracy
  • disinfection

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