Exhaled Gas Analysis Using Fitmate® in Respiratory Diseases

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In this study, exhaled gas was analyzed to evaluate dynamic pulmonary function in patients with respiratory diseases. The ⩒O₂ was measured and the anaerobic threshold (AT) determined during treadmill exercise. Exercise tolerance in pneumonia patients was compared with that in those with other respiratory diseases before discharge from hospital to evaluate the effects of rehabilitation. Treadmill exercise tests were administered using a continuous incremental multiple-load protocol to determine oxygen demand and the AT. The ⩒O₂ levels in pneumonia patients (5.19 ± 0.77) were not significantly lower than those in the other patients (5.56 ± 0.63), and neither was the AT (5.26 ± 1.23 versus 5.84 ± 0.62, respectively). At peak exercise, the Borg scale level was 2.8 ± 0.2 (pneumonia, 3.0 ± 0.4; others, 2.8 ± 0.2, P＝0.623); SpO₂ was 90.6 ± 0.7 (pneumonia, 90.6 ± 1.2; others, 90.5 ± 0.9, P＝0.962); and heart rate (HR) was 120.3 ± 2.9 (pneumonia, 123.9 ± 6.8; others, 119.0 ± 3.2, P＝0.469). Exhaled gas analysis in patients with respiratory diseases revealed that exercise tolerance was generally decreased, and that there was a weak negative correlation between age and ⩒O₂ peak (r＝－0.248; P＝0.186). The Borg scale levels, SpO₂, and HR at peak exercise showed no significant differences between pneumonia patients and others. This analysis allowed prediction of whether patients with pneumonia could leave the hospital or not based on early-stage exercise tolerance. Such AT data could be useful in helping patients to understand their own limitations with respect to exercise tolerance.