Spirometry in the diagnosis of asthma in children.

PURPOSE OF REVIEW: To review the diagnostic accuracy of lung function measurements made using spirometry for childhood asthma, recent guidelines for the measurement and interpretation of spirometric lung function tests and recent developments for diagnosing asthma.

RECENT FINDINGS: Measurements of lung function and bronchial lability made using spirometry may not perform any better than other tests such as skin prick testing, or measurements of exhaled nitric oxide for diagnosing asthma. New guidelines are available.

SUMMARY: Spirometry is a simple, robust and widely available tool for investigating lung function. There are published guidelines for making measurements and their interpretation. The place of spirometry in the diagnosis of asthma, however, needs clarification. The diagnostic profiles of measurements of bronchodilator responsiveness and bronchial hyperreactivity made using spirometry, although reasonable, are not perfect. In schoolchildren, they are no better than knowledge of aeroallergen sensitization when considering a diagnosis of asthma.