Spirometry Pre-appointment Instructions for Patients

General instructions

Patients are expected to bring a salbutamol (Ventolin) inhaler to be used during the test. If not, there is an additional $25 fee for supply from our stock.

Patients should be advised to avoid:

• smoking (including the use of electronic cigarettes or water pipe) for at least 1 hour before the test, to prevent acute bronchoconstriction
• consuming alcohol or other intoxicants for at least 8 hours before the test, to prevent problems with coordination, physical performance or comprehension
• exercising vigorously for at least 1 hour before the test, to prevent potential exercise-induced bronchoconstriction.

It is also helpful to wear loose clothing that does not restrict the chest or abdomen and empty bladder before the testing session.
Patients who use a short-acting beta2 agonist inhaler (e.g. those with asthma or COPD), should bring their own inhaler and spacer to use when testing bronchodilator responsiveness.

Withholding bronchodilators

When spirometry is performed as a diagnostic test, inhaled bronchodilators should be withheld before the test (Table 6). However, patients who use short acting beta2 agonists (e.g. for asthma or COPD) for symptom relief should still use these if needed.

Patients who take regular long-acting beta2 agonists in combination with inhaled corticosteroids for asthma should not be advised to withhold their medication before spirometry unless they are undergoing medically supervised withdrawal for the purpose of confirming the diagnosis.