About Us > Gold Standard Transducer
The Gold Standard transducer from Micro Medical gives you the most reproducible volume measurements for your COPD & Asthma patients. Especially effective at low flows, it complies with all current ATS and other recognised international standards for accuracy. It means that Micro Medical's world beating spirometers are the definitive benchmark for accurate respiratory measurement - bar none.
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Micro Medical as the leading supplier of spirometry equipment in the UK have recognised that the existing American Thoracic Society standards may appear inadequate for the very low flow profiles generated by severe COPD patients.
In response to this Micro Medical has undertaken an extensive research and development program to improve still further the performance of it's digital volume transducer culminating in the new Gold standard version.
This new digital Volume transducer incorporates the existing advantages of inherent stability(1) and the virtual immunity from the effects of pressure, humidity and temperature(2,3).The new transducer is the perfect measuring device for spirometry in patients with all types of chest disease.
An improvement of over 40% in accuracy as well as improved linearity at these critical low flows combined with the new advanced software has produced the new definitive Gold Standard that other existing Spirometer transducers now need to achieve.
The documented inaccuracies of the unheated fleish(4) and wedge-bellows spirometers(5,6) make the new Gold Standard spirometers from Micro Medical the devices of choice for COPD measurements.
Questions and Answers on the 'Gold Standard Transducer'
Why introduce a new transducer?
The current international standards for spirometry manufacture are the American Thoracic Society's. These were first published in 1978 and have been updated in 1987 and most recently 1994. However recent increases in the use of spirometers in the diagnosis of COPD have highlighted some weakness in the extremely low flow characteristics of these recommendations. Micro Medical has recognised the need for a change in the spirometry standards and has improved it's current transducer ahead of new standards.
Why does it appear to only affect the Micro Medical transducer?
It doesn't, all transducers have strengths and weaknesses it's just that the turbine device can be characterised for a particular set of standards. The current ATS (1994 update) being the most detailed in the methods of achievement uses the Hankinson waveform generator, which allows manufacturers to have a reproducible production test. The alternative transducers such as the wedge bellows and unheated pneumotachographs all have BTPS and stability problems.
How has Micro Medical overcome the very low flow problem?
Micro Medical has four waveform generators (Pulmonary Waveform Generator System; MH Custom Design, USA) and by digitally capturing COPD patient Flow/Volume loops can reproduce these as sample curves for both the transducer modification and the new software algorithm. Linear flows can also be generated and by experimentation we have changed the internal structure of the transducer to increase low flow sensitivity. A new algorithm has also been generated which uses low flows as it's primary target in preference to the Hankinson waveforms.
Bibliography
1. Dirksen A, Madsen F, Pederson OF, Vedel AM, Jenson AK, Long term performance of a hand held spirometer. Thorax 1996;5 1;973-976
2. Pederson O,F Miller M.R, Sigsgaard T, Tidley M, Harding R.M, Portable peak flow meters; physical characteristics, influence of temperature, altitude and humidity. Eur Respir J 1994, 7 991-997
3. Pollard AJ, Mason NP, Barry PW, Pollard RC, Collier DJ, Fraser RS, Miller MR, Milledge JS. Effect of altitude on spirometric parameters and the performance of peak flow meters, Thorax 1996;51:175-178
4. Miller M.R., Sigsgaard, prevention of thermal and condensation errors in pneumotachographic recordings of the maximal forced expiratory manoeuvre. Eur Respir J 1994, 7, 193-201
5. Madsen F, Frolund L, Ulrik C, S, Dirksen A, Office spirometry; temperature conversion of volumes measured by the Vitalograph-R bellows spirometer is not necessary. Respir, Med. 1999 93, 685-688
6. Cramer D, Peacock A, Denison D, Temperature corrections in routine spirometry. Thorax 1984, 39 771- 774