Validation of new method for diagnosing occupational asthma from serial PEF measurements

Measuring the Area Between the mean hourly workday and mean hourly resday PEF Curves (ABC) is an alternative method of confirming the diagnosis of occupational asthma from serial PEF measurements which requires more frequent but less prolonged measurements than the standard Oasys discriminant analysis method. A difference of 15 liters/min per hour of the waking day had a sensitivity of 72% and a specificity of 100% when assessed against validated diagnoses independant of PEF measurement. The method is only valid for those working day or morning shifts. It has been added to the development version of Oasys

References

	Moore VC, Jaakkola MS, Burge CBSG, Robertson AS, Pantin CF, Vellore AD, Burge PS, A New Diagnostic Score for Occupational Asthma, Chest, 2009;135:307-314,

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