Evidence map›Paper›PMID 35035543›Full record

ArticleBreathe (Sheffield, England)2021

Multiple breath washout: measuring early manifestations of lung pathology.

Sanja Stanojevic, Cole Bowerman, Paul Robinson

Open access · diamondAbstract read
In one paragraph

Article in Breathe (Sheffield, England), 2021. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 18 papers, 3 of them syntheses that pooled it.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
18citing papers in PubMed, 3 pooled it
2.6field-weighted citation impact, top 9% of its field
1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

The trial behind it

Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.

Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

18 citing papers in PubMed, 3 syntheses or guidelines pooled it, 31 citations in OpenAlex.

  1. Definitions of early COPD and predictors for disease progression: a systematic review.European respiratory review : an official journal of the European Respiratory Society · 2026
    Pooled it
  2. Multiple breath washout in primary ciliary dyskinesia: a systematic review of the literature.European respiratory review : an official journal of the European Respiratory Society · 2025
    Pooled it
  3. Guideline
  4. Article
  5. Review
  6. Article
  7. Review
  8. Review
  9. Post-lung transplant surveillance in 2026: current practice, variability, and the need for standardization.Transplant international : official journal of the European Society for Organ Transplantation · 2026
    Review
  10. Article
  11. Observational
  12. Observational
  13. Review
  14. Article
  15. Lung Function Tests in Infants and Children.Indian journal of pediatrics · 2023
    Review
  16. Article
  17. Article
  18. Review
4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

3 authors at 2 institutions in 2 countries.

Sanja StanojevicDept of Community Health and Epidemiology, Dalhousie University, Halifax, NS, Canada.ORCID https://orcid.org/0000-0001-7931-8051
Cole BowermanDept of Community Health and Epidemiology, Dalhousie University, Halifax, NS, Canada.ORCID https://orcid.org/0000-0002-9871-281X
Paul RobinsonDept of Respiratory Medicine, Children's Hospital at Westmead, Sydney, Australia.ORCID https://orcid.org/0000-0001-7397-105X
Dalhousie University · CAThe University of Sydney · AU

Funding

No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

The multiple breath washout (MBW) test measures the efficiency of gas mixing in the lungs and has gained significant interest over the past 20 years. MBW outcomes detect early lung function impairment and peripheral airway pathology, through its main outcome measure lung clearance index (LCI). LCI measures the number of lung turnovers required to washout an inert tracer gas. MBW is performed during normal (tidal) breathing, making it particularly suitable for young children or those who have trouble performing forced manoeuvres. Additionally, research in chronic respiratory disease populations has shown that MBW can detect acute clinically relevant changes before conventional lung function tests, such as spirometry, thus enabling early intervention. The development of technical standards for MBW and commercial devices have allowed MBW to be implemented in clinical research and potentially routine clinical practice. Although studies have summarised clinimetric properties of MBW indices, additional research is required to establish the clinical utility of MBW and, if possible, shorten testing time. Sensitive, feasible measures of early lung function decline will play an important role in early intervention for people living with respiratory diseases. EDUCATIONAL

aimTo describe the multiple breath washout test, its applications to lung pathology and respiratory disease, as well as directions for future research.

Identifiers

PMID35035543
PMCPMC8753656
OpenAlexW3201704325

What OpenQuestion holds

Textmetadata
LicenceCC BY-NC
Read underepoch 390

Registered trials

None linked

Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.