Press Articles
GP Magazine - PulmoLife Review
[20/01/2006] - PulmoLife COPD Screening DeviceBy Dr Peter Standing
Click here to view the actual PulmoLife article from the GP magazine
The PulmoLife is a screening spirometer from Micro Medical Ltd designed to pick up early COPD in smokers. The single best index for monitoring COPD deterioration is the FEV1 which the PulmoLife can record. The device does not measure FVC or FER.
Modern technology should display simple operational prompts. I had no difficulty using the PulmoLife entirely from the LCD display.
The purpose of the four control buttons (on, enter, scroll up, scroll down) is obvious and the screen icon choices for sex, height, age and race are easy to follow. A little bleep and a picture of a patient blowing reassures you that you have entered data and that the device is ready.
Simple to Operate
It took me just 22 seconds to switch it on, select the male icon, adjust the height entry, key in my age (58) and race, blow into the machine and discover that my own FEV1 was 3.39 litres, 100 per cent of predicted.
The results are extremely clear, displaying the FEV1 in litres and its percentage of predicted. Percentages below 80 flash repeatedly and pressing the scroll key reveals a picture of a sad male or female smoker with a Lung Age.
Feigning COPD with an FEV1 only 63 per cent of predicted, the PulmoLife told me that my lung age was not 58 but 88. The message was clear — it was high time to quit.
Identifying undiagnosed COPD among the smoking community is important. Quite apart from helping smokers understand the damage they are inflicting on their lungs, diagnosing COPD is the first step to implementing treatment.
Maintaining Patients
Although the condition cannot be cured, its progress can be slowed down and some improvement in lung function is often possible.
The PulmoLife can be used to monitor FEV1 in known COPD sufferers.
The method for measuring FEV1 is essentially the same as in Micro Medical’s other handheld spirometers. I tested it against my other spirometers and found the results to be almost identical.
However, for diagnoses, remember the PulmoLife is a screening tool and confirmatory spirometry including FVC and FER measurement and reversibility testing remain important. With 45 points, COPD ranks fifth in the quality framework table and three of the indicators relate to spirometry, accounting for 16 points. By using the PulmoLife to screen for new cases of COPD, practice prevalence can be boosted above the national mean, with short term financial gains.
The PulmoLife achieves top marks in my books. Even GPs and nurses who hate technology should enjoy using it. Its price has been sensibly pitched at about £100 - very reasonable for such a sophisticated gadget.
Spirometry and quality markers
| Indicator | COPD Quality Markers | Target | Points |
| COPD 2 | New diagnoses since April 2003 confirmed by spirometry and reversibility testing. | 90% | 5 |
| COPD 3 | All COPD diagnoses confirmed by spirometry and reversibility testing. | 90% | 5 |
| COPD 6 | FEV1 recorded in previous 27 months | 70% | 6 |
An independent review by Dr Standing, a GP in Bury, Lancashire