Abstract
Pulmonary function testing (PFT) allows for quantitative analysis of lung function. However, as a result of the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic, a majority of international medical societies have postponed PFTs in an effort to mitigate disease transmission, complicating the continuity of care in high-risk patients diagnosed with COVID-19 or preexisting lung pathologies. Here, we describe the development of a non-contact wearable pulmonary sensor for pulmonary waveform analysis, pulmonary volume quantification, and crude thoracic imaging using the eddy current (EC) phenomenon. Statistical regression analysis is performed to confirm the predictive validity of the sensor, and all data are continuously and digitally stored with a sampling rate of 6,660 samples/second. Wearable pulmonary function sensors may facilitate rapid point-of-care monitoring for high-risk individuals, especially during the COVID-19 pandemic, and easily interface with patient hospital records or telehealth services.
Highlights
Pulmonary function testing (PFT) allows for quantitative analysis of lung function
The American Thoracic Society and many comparable international societies have recommended postponing PFTs during the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic, due to the high risk of COVID-19 transmission during the outpatient testing visit[4,5,6,7,8]. While these restrictions were put in place through expert guidance to prevent the spread of disease, they have made it difficult to gauge pulmonary function in patients with previously diagnosed lung disease as well as those recovering from COVID-19 pneumonia whom require close follow-up examination
Eddy currents generated due to the decrease in local conductivity during inhalation resulted in increased R p measurements taken by the chip (Fig. 1A & Supplementary Fig. 4)
Summary
Pulmonary function testing (PFT) allows for quantitative analysis of lung function. as a result of the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic, a majority of international medical societies have postponed PFTs in an effort to mitigate disease transmission, complicating the continuity of care in high-risk patients diagnosed with COVID-19 or preexisting lung pathologies. The American Thoracic Society and many comparable international societies have recommended postponing PFTs during the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic, due to the high risk of COVID-19 transmission during the outpatient testing visit[4,5,6,7,8] While these restrictions were put in place through expert guidance to prevent the spread of disease, they have made it difficult to gauge pulmonary function in patients with previously diagnosed lung disease as well as those recovering from COVID-19 pneumonia whom require close follow-up examination. Implementation of conductivity-based scanning allowed for crude imaging of the thoracic cavity due to the wide range of conductivities of organs contained within The development of such a device may allow for efficient non-contact PFTs during the COVID-19 pandemic, provide relevant respiratory metrics for remote clinical assessment, and monitor conductivity changes within the lungs resulting from edematous or inflammatory lung pathologies
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