Reply to: ERS/ATS spirometry interpretation standards: a gap in grading severity of airflow obstruction

Extract S.P. Bhatt and co-workers raise an important point with respect to how airflow obstruction and severity of impairment are defined in the updated European Respiratory Society/American Thoracic Society (ERS/ATS) pulmonary function testing interpretation standard [1]. There is general consensus that airflow obstruction is defined as an impaired forced expiratory volume in the first second (FEV1) relative to the forced vital capacity (FVC) (i.e. FEV1/FVC). The second component, grading of the severity of impairment, assesses the overall functional assessment of the obstruction. Unlike total lung capacity (TLC) and diffusing capacity of the lung for carbon monoxide (DLCO), which are used in both the definition and the grading of severity (of restriction (TLC) or diffusion (DLCO)), FEV1 is unique because it is not used in the definition of obstruction, only in the grading of severity.
Source: European Respiratory Journal - Category: Respiratory Medicine Authors: Tags: Correspondence Source Type: research