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Centre for Policy on Ageing | |
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| Performing slow vital capacity in older people with and without cognitive impairment - is it useful? | | Author(s) | S C Allen, C Charlton, W Backen |
| Journal title | Age and Ageing, vol 39, no 5, September 2010 |
| Pages | pp 588-591 |
| Source | http://www.ageing.oxfordjournals.org http://www.bgs.org.uk doi: 10.1093/ageing/afq084 |
| Annotation | Most patients with moderate cognitive impairment are unable to perform forced spirometry. It has been suggested that slow vital capacity (SVC) is easier to perform than forced vital capacity (FVC) because it requires less understanding and co-ordination. A study was conducted to determine whether that assertion is correct. The authors studied 83 inpatients, mean age 83 years (range 67-95, 51 female). They had measurements made of FVC, SVC and the Mini-Mental State Examination (MMSE). The spirometry was conducted using the European Respiratory Society/American Thoracic Society standards. Results found of the 83 subjects, 38 were able to do both FVC and SVC and 32 were unable to do either. The overall concordance was 84%. Twelve were able to do SVC but not FVC (eight due to excessive cough, two due to weakness and two had an MMSE < 24 with poor co-ordination). An inability to do neither FVC nor SVC was predicted by an MMSE < 24/30 (P < 0.0001) with a sensitivity of 88% and specificity of 67%. In conclusion, SVC is not a usable substitute for FVC for elderly patients with cognitive impairment but is of some utility for those who tend to cough. An MMSE < 24/30 is predictive of inability to perform FVC and SVC. (KJ). |
| Accession Number | CPA-101019209 A |
Data © Centre for Policy on Ageing |
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| ...from the Ageinfo database published by Centre for Policy on Ageing. |
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