Two centuries ago, British surgeon John Hutchinson invented a calibrated clock sealed in water that collected the amount of air exhaled after maximum inspiration. In 1846, using rudimentary equipment, he described the first vital capacity parameter, vital capacity or “survivability.”
Spirometry measures air flow; by measuring how much air you exhale and how fast you exhale, spirometry can assess a variety of lung diseases.
Today, on World Spirometry Day, it can be concluded that it is also a painless study of the volume and rhythm of air flow in the lungs. This procedure is often used to evaluate lung function in patients with obstructive or restrictive lung diseases, such as asthma or cystic fibrosis.
This type of medical test can diagnose lung lesions that a specialist cannot detect during a first visit, as spirometry is done to diagnose some lung diseases, such as asthma, bronchitis, or emphysema.