New Device to Test for Pulmonary Function for 21st Century Care

Spirometry and Plethysmography are the primary methods to characterize pulmonary function for most lung diseases (such as COPD and asthma). However, these century-old measurement techniques present challenges in the modern healthcare environment: they are difficult and uncomfortable for patients to accurately self-administer, day-to-day tracking to monitor disease progression can be challenging due to measurement variations, and the amount of data is limited and only most evident for more severe pulmonary cases.  New methods for characterizing lung function could be transformative for care delivery and patient outcomes.

Prof. Mona Eskandari, whose research is known for seminal strides in experimental characterization and computational modeling of lung structural mechanics using novel techniques developed in her lab, has discovered a new method for measuring pulmonary function. It works by analyzing the change in temporal pressure while a patient is holding their breath. The measurement device is simple, comfortable and error-free for the patient to self-administer. Algorithms are used to transform the detailed lung data collection into actionable metrics for early detection capabilities for medical intervention and prevention. The discovery could provide more accessible, detailed, timely, and actionable data on lung function compared to conventional and currently used methods.