Muscles and the thoracic cavity are vital components of respiration.
Respiratory muscle testing involves measurement of thoracic pressure changes with inspiration (breathing in), as well as pressure changes in the esophagus. Pressure from the stomach during coughing is a means of measuring expiratory pressure, which is muscle strength while breathing out. The lungs are also vital to respiration and are included in other respiratory muscle testing methods.
Respiratory Muscles
Muscles used in respiration produce the force with which air is inhaled and exhaled, while also helping supply the body with blood and the brain with oxygen. Problems with any one, or more, of the vital components of the respiratory system can raise clinical concerns. For example, weak respiratory muscles could explain someone's intolerance to physical exercise, while other symptoms affect the prognosis of a person with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease or COPD, among other conditions.
Respiratory Muscle Force
Among the most common non-invasive tests conducted on the respiratory muscles are measuring the maximum voluntary inspiratory (inhaled) and expiratory (exhaled) pressures. These are measured at the mouth, utilizing a mouthpiece, by prompting the person examined to breath in to her maximum capacity, and breath out to empty the lungs as much as she can in one single exhale. These tests are typically performed on a seated person. Some people who are examined will perform the inspiration test through the nose, using a "sniff" type of inhalation.
Other Measurements
In some rare cases, the person takes an esophageal pressure test and another test of the gastric or abdominal region pressure, measured in centimeters of water (cmH2O). The difference between the two pressures measured here (found by subtracting one from the other) is known as the "transdiaphragmatic pressure," and this value is considered a good representation of the diaphragmatic functioning level, or strength.
Tags: muscle testing, pressure changes, Respiratory Muscle, respiratory muscles, vital components