Relationship between acoustic breath sounds and spirometry
Research type
Research Study
Full title
A comparative single centre study assessing the relationship between acoustic breath sounds as measured by a commercially available sound recording device against standard of care (spirometry) in the assessment of airflow obstruction in patients who plan to undergo spirometry testing.
IRAS ID
312339
Contact name
Brendan Cooper
Contact email
Sponsor organisation
University Hospitals Birmingham NHS Foundation Trust
Clinicaltrials.gov Identifier
Duration of Study in the UK
1 years, 6 months, 0 days
Research summary
The purpose of this study is to assess a commercially available acoustic breath sound (ABS) recording device called the "Wheezo" against spirometry with respect to detecting airflow obstruction.
Expiratory airflow and volume can be measured during a spirometry test. When performing spirometry, (after inhaling maximally) individuals exhale with maximal force and duration into a spirometer. The spirometry measures the speed of airflow and volume of air exhaled with respect to time. These values are then compared to what is expected, which is based upon an individual’s age, height and sex.
Airflow obstruction refers to reduction in the fraction of air exhaled in the first second of the test, relative to the volume of air exhaled in the entirety of the test. Airflow obstruction is associated with abnormal airway function (narrowed airways) and is a common finding in asthma and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD).
Thus, spirometry is performed routinely to aid diagnosis and monitor asthma and COPD over time. Spirometry has limitations as it can only be performed by trained healthcare professionals, which reduces the clinical utility outside of a clinical environment.
The Wheezo is a commercially available non-invasive sound recording device that is placed against the trachea and records the proportion of breath sounds that contain wheeze (known as the Tw/Ttot%). Wheeze is an abnormal breath sound that is generated by airflow interacting with abnormally narrow airways. Therefore, the aim of this project is to identify whether the device is able to identify and quantify airflow obstruction by comparing Tw/Ttot% against spirometry.
Currently it is unknown if the measurements taken by the device are comparable to that measured by spirometry. If there is agreement, this device may have pre-hospital utility by patients to aid guide therapy and need for medical intervention.
REC name
West Midlands - South Birmingham Research Ethics Committee
REC reference
22/WM/0247
Date of REC Opinion
24 Oct 2022
REC opinion
Favourable Opinion