OEP System has been used in a wide range of applications by researchers and doctors all around the world. Their results have been documented and published by many scientific journals and publications.

What follows is a selected list that describes what was made possible by BTS's OEP System.

Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease (COPD) patients

OEP System can be used to dynamically track absolute lung volumes during exercise in COPD patients and to assess possible dynamic hyperinflation without requiring manoeuvers like inspiratory capacity. Also, OEP System can be used to study the effect of pharmacological treatment like bronchodilators in the subdivision of lung and chest wall volumes.

References:

Aliverti A, Stevenson N, Dellacà RL, Lo Mauro A, Pedotti A, Calverley PMA. Regional Chest Wall Volumes during exercise in Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease. Thorax, in press.

Aliverti A, Dellacà R, Stevenson N, Pedotti A, Lo Mauro A, Calverley PMA. Effects of bronchodilators on subdivisions of lung and chest wall volume in COPD. Eur. Respir. J., 20, suppl. 38,13s, 2002

Asthma and bronchoconstriction

The effects of bronchocostriction in asthmatic patients on hyperinflation, chest wall mechanics, and rib cage distortion have been recently studied by OEP System.

References:

Gorini M, Iandelli I, Misuri G, Bertoli F, Filippelli M, Mancini M, Duranti R, Gigliotti F, Scano G. Chest wall hyperinflation during acute bronchoconstriction in asthma. Am. J. Resp. Critic. Care Med., 160:808-816, 1999

Hemiplegic patients

The unique ability of OEP System to measure symmetry in right/left respiratory movements has been recently used to investigate differences between paretic and healthy sides in patients with hemiparesis

References:

Lanini B, Bianchi R, Romagnoli I, Coli C, Binazzi B, Gigliotti F, Pizzi A, Grippo A, Scano G. Chest wall kinematics in patients with hemiplegia. Am. J. Respir Critic. Care Med., 168(1):109-13, 2003

Intensive Care Unit (ICU) Patients

In the assessment of intensive care patients submitted to mechanical ventilation, OEP System can substantially help to better investigate the alterations of chest wall mechanics and the relationships between lung and chest wall, particularly in critically ill patients with acute respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS). Typical applications include the complete monitoring of ventilatory parameters during weaning from mechanical ventilation, and the assessment of its prognostic value in predicting which patients can sustain spontaneous or non invasive assisted methods of ventilation, and which may require intubation.

References:

Aliverti A, Dellacà RL, Pelosi R, Chiumello D, Pedotti A, Gattinoni L. Opto-electronic plethysmography in intensive care patients. Am. J. Resp. Crit. Care Med., 161: 1546-1552, 2000

Dellacà RL, Aliverti A, Pelosi P, Carlesso E, Chiumello D, Pedotti A, Gattinoni L. Estimation of end-expiratory lung volume variations by optoelectronic plethysmography. Crit. Care Med., 29(9):1807-11, 2001.

Spinal Cord Injury (SCI) Patients

OEP System was recently used to study tetraplegic patients. This was the first report that showed the usefulness of this technique for the optimization of mechanical ventilation, phrenic nerve stimulation and functional electrical stimulation of abdominal muscles in these patients.

References:

Kandare F, Exner G, Jeraj J, Aliverti A, Dellacà RL, Stanic U, Pedotti A, Jaeger R. Breathing induced by abdominal muscle stimulation in individuals without spontaneous ventilation. Neuromodulation, 5(3): 180-185, 2002

Physiology

OEP System has been widely used to investigate the mechanisms of respiratory muscle action and control, to quantify chest wall volumes, rib cage distortion and blood shifts during exercise in healthy subjects both in normal conditions and during artificially-induced expiratory flow limitations.

References:

Aliverti A, Cala SJ, Duranti R, Ferrigno G, Kenyon CM, Pedotti A, Scano G, Sliwinski P, Macklem PT and Yan S. Human Respiratory Muscle Actions and Control during Exercise. J. Appl. Physiol. 83(4): 1256-1269, 1997

Kenyon CM, Cala SJ, Yan S, Aliverti A, Scano G, Duranti R, Pedotti A and Macklem PT. Rib Cage Mechanics during Quiet Breathing and Exercise in Humans. J. Appl. Physiol. 83(4): 1242-1255, 1997

Aliverti A, Iandelli I, Duranti R, Cala S, Kayser B, Kelly S, Misuri G, Pedotti A, Scano G, Sliwinski P, Yan S, Macklem PT. Respiratory muscle dynamics and control during exercise with externally imposed expiratory flow-limitation. J. Appl. Physiol., 92(5): 1953-1963, 2002

Iandelli I, Aliverti A, Kayser B, Dellacà RL, Cala S, Duranti R, Kelly S, Scano G, Sliwinski P, Yan S, Macklem PT, Pedotti A. Determinants of exercise performance in normal men with externally imposed expiratory flow-limitation. J. Appl. Physiol., 92(5): 1943-1952, 2002