What is a Lung Function Monitor?
Air movement out of the lungs is measured by the PIKO monitor in 2 important ways: the “peak flow” (PEF) is a measure of how fast air can be blown out of the lungs and the FEV-1 is the amount of air blown out of the lungs in one second. Both PEF and FEV-1 measurements can be used to define asthma severity; the FEV-1 is more specific for Asthma and more reliable for office testing. (FEV-1 is not measured by most other flow meters.) Peak flow values are typically recorded to monitor asthma at home. • Why do I need a PIKO-1 Monitor? Asthma severity is defined by FEV-1 levels comparing your values to values predicted for your age, sex and weight. Asthma severity is also defined by day-to-day variability in peak flows which requires home monitoring to detect. Each time you are seen in our office, we can review the values in your peak flow diary. This information will help us determine if your Asthma is under optimal control or if changes need to be made to your treatment. • How do I set-up
