Single-breath diffusing capacity and lung volumes in small laboratory mammals.

We measured the single-breath diffusing capacity for carbon monoxide (DLCO), total lung capacity (TLC), functional residual capacity (FRC), and residual volume (RV) in anesthetized male hamsters, rats, guinea pigs, and rabbits whose weights varied from 40 to 3,500 g. TLC (defined as an airway pressure of 25 cmH2O) was calculated by neon dilution. The DLCO was estimated by a modification of the single-breath method. There was a high correlation between body weight and our measurement of both the diffusing capacity and the lung volumes. No significant difference in DLCO was observed in rats when measured in different body positions, at airway pressures of 10 or 20 cmH2O, from FRC or RV, in male or female rats, or following hyperventilation.