Spirometric Studies in Non-Smoking, Healthy Adults

Abstract

Reference spirometric values for vital capacity (VC), forced expiratory volume in one second (FEV₁), forced vital capacity (FVC), forced expiratory volume in one second as percentage of vital capacity or of forced vital capacity (FEV%), the highest flow during forced inspiration (V˙_{max insp}), the highest forced expiratory flow at 50% vital capacity (V˙_{max 50%}), the highest forced expiratory flow when 75% of vital capacity has been expired (V˙_{max 25%}), V˙_{max insp}/V˙_{max 50%} and peak expiratory flow (PEF) were determined in a series of 296 males and 257 females, 18–65 years old, who have never smoked.

Equations were derived using height and age as predictors. The reproducibility was tested.

Key-words:

• lung volumes
• non-smokers
• reference values
• spirometry