Patent ID: 7445601

Claim:
A system for non-invasively diagnosing abnormal respiratory function, comprising: a patient breathing tube; a flow meter connected to said tube; a spectrometer interconnected to and in fluid communication with said tube, wherein said spectrometer is adapted to detect the concentration of gases present in said tube; and data processing means interconnected to said flow meter and said spectrometer, wherein said data processing means is programmed to calculate and display at least one gas concentration ratio selected from the group consisting of the ratio of NO relative to the concentration of CO, the ratio of CO 2 to O 2 relative to the ratio of NO to CO, the ratio of NO to CO relative to expired volume, the ratio of CO 2 to O 2 relative to the ratio of CO 2 to O 2 relative to expired volume, and the ratio of CO 2 to O 2 simultaneously with a plot of NO relative to expired volume.