Asthma Diagnosis
Asthma can be diagnosed through many ways. Diagnosis can include physical examination of the patient, asking medical history to the patient and some laboratory tests for lung functions etc. Generally, doctors observe the symptoms that suggest the obstruction in the airflow or breathing. Physiologic test are performed to determine the asthma disease. Doctors use stethoscope to hear the obstruction in the airway of chest.
Tests for Asthma Diagnosis
Spirometry is the mostly used and reliable test for identifying the obstruction in the airway of breathing. In this test, spirometer is used to measure the airflow in the lungs. A patient needs to inhale as big as his or her capacity and then exhale the air with full force. It is expected that the patient should exhale at least for six seconds.
The spirometer can measure the exhaled air from mouth and time taken to exhale. The air exhaled in the first second is compared to the total air exhaled. If the first amount of exhaled air is less than the total amount of the air, it is determined that the airway has some obstruction. The patient is given a bronchodilator to inhale that widens the airway, and again the spirometry is performed.
Some patients do not response to this test and do not show any reversibility in the obstruction. Hence, anti-inflammatory medicines are administered for some weeks then the spirometry is performed. If the results in the second times are more positive compared to the first test, the obstruction can be considered as reversible.
The symptoms of asthma differ from each person to another, so it becomes difficult to use spirometry in all the cases of asthma. In this case, PEF is used to monitor the maximum force used to exhale the air from mouth. This test can be performed twice a day for two weeks that helps the patient to record the changes in the results, and doctors can recommend proper treatment for it. Peak flow varies in all times of a day. The variability in the peak is more than 20%, and then the airway is considered as reversible.
Other Tests
There are some other tests that help to exclude the similar disease to the asthma attack. These tests also identify the conditions that fuel the asthmatic situations.
These tests include:
- Allergy Testing: It involves the skin testing or the antibodies testing to determine whether the allergens have caused the asthmatic situation.
- Chest X-rays: It is used to identify other health problems.
- Sinus X-rays: It helps to identify whether sinusitis are responsible for the asthma attacks.
