Respiratory Department
Our well-equipped respiratory department offers a wide range of services in order to combat your health issues. The respiratory system is complex and extensive, but we are dedicated to finding remedies to your health battles.
Respiratory diseases refer to chest conditions as common as asthma, allergy, bronchitis or more specialists’ diseases such as lung cancer or lung fibrosis. Our doctors often deal with symptoms such as breathlessness, cough, chest infections and allergies. Even such conditions like snoring or not breathing at night time can be dealt with by a respiratory specialist.
Our modern facilities are widely developed to contend with patients who need breathing tests, x-rays and CT scans and camera tests in the lungs. We provide an integrated pulmonary team with educated specialists, equipped to diagnosis and deal with the complexities of respiratory problems.
Some of the treatments we provide include:
Appointments and Referrals:
Pulmonary Function Tests (PFTs)
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Gas Diffusion (DLCO)
Diffusing capacity is used to measure the ability of the lungs to transfer gas from inspired air to the red blood cells in the pulmonary capillaries.
DLCO is particularly used to evaluate various fibrosing diseases such pulmonary fibrosis or asbestos exposure but is also used to evaluate emphysema, CF, cardiovascular diseases and the effects of chemotherapy agents or other drugs.
The patient will inhale maximally and hold this air in their lungs for 10 seconds, after which they will gently exhale the air back into the mouthpiece. The expired air is then analysed by the computer.
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Lung Volumes by Body Plethsmography
Inspired and expired lung volumes are useful for detecting, characterising and quantifying the severity of lung disease. It is primarily useful for diagnosing and monitoring restrictive lung diseases such as sarcoidosis, asbestos exposure or pulmonary fibrosis. The patient will gently “‘pant” into a mouthpiece against a closed shutter, for a few seconds.
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Spirometry
Spirometry testing is quick, non-invasive and painless. If you regularly experience breathlessness, have difficulty breathing, or otherwise suspect you have a lung disease, spirometry should be performed. The patient will be asked to quietly breathe in and out through a mouthpiece.
The technician will then instruct the patient to rapidly fill the lungs with air and immediately blast this air out as quickly as possible back into the mouthpiece and continue the blast out until the lungs are completely empty. They will rapidly fill the lungs again to complete the test.
Bronchial Challenge Testing
Mannitol and/or Exercise challenge testing are used to determine degrees of airway responsiveness (e.g. Airway narrowing), either triggered by an aerosol solution (e.g. asthma) or by exercise (exercise induced bronchospasm).
- Mannitol challenge testing involves inhaling various concentrations of a powder that is known to tighten the airways in responsive patients. Generally, it is used to exclude a diagnosis of asthma or to test the relative risk of its future development.
- Exercise challenge testing involves exercising for 4-6 minutes at your target heart rate. You will then perform a basic breathing test every few minutes to assess the response of your airways from the exercise.
More Respiratory Department Services
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Allergy Skin Prick Test
An allergy is abnormal immune responses to commonly occurring substances (that are not harmful in themselves). These include foods, inhalants (pollen, dusts, and animal dander), insect bites and drugs.
The technician applies the allergens to the skin on your forearm or back, and then a gentle scratch is applied by lancet over any of the allergens which are thought to be causing the issue.
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Maximum Inspiratory & Expiratory Pressure (MIP & MEP)
The maximum inspiratory pressure is the highest atmospheric pressure developed during inspiration against an occluded airway (MIP). The maximum expiratory pressure is the highest pressure developed during expiration against an occluded airway (MEP).
These are a useful measure of the power of the inspiratory and expiratory muscles. Often used in conjunction with other tests, in the diagnosis of neuromuscular disease.
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Sleep Studies
Beacon Hospital also deal with sleeping issues. Sleep studies are tests which monitor what happens to your body during sleep. The studies are done to find out what is causing your sleep problems.
The most common respiratory sleep disorder would be sleep apnoea. If you suffer from the following symptoms, you may have sleep apnoea that can be diagnosed from a sleep study:
- Loud, frequent and irregular snoring
- Your spouse/partner indicates that you periodically stop breathing or appear to be choking during your sleep, or gasp for breath.
- Excessive daytime sleepiness and/or falling asleep when you don’t intend to. This could be almost anytime you are sitting down, such as during a lecture, while watching TV, while sitting at a desk, and even while driving a vehicle. Even if you don’t literally fall asleep, excessive fatigue/tiredness could be a positive indicator.
- Body movements often accompany the awakenings at the end of each apnoea episode, and this, together with the loud snoring, will disrupt the spouse/partners’ sleep and often cause her/him to move to a separate bed or room.
- Forgetfulness (short term memory), difficulty in concentrating, focusing and completing repetitive tasks. Bouts of irritability and depression are common. If working, a dis-improvement in performance over a period of time.
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Six Minute Walk Test (6MWT)
The distance walked by the patient in 6 minutes wearing an oxygen monitor on their finger, is used to assess sub maximal level of response of pulmonary system.
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