MAXIMAL RESPIRATORY PRESSURES: NORMAL VALUES.
Contributors: University Of Illinois At Chicago, Health Sciences Center.
Published: 1992
Number of pages: 92
Subjects: Health Sciences, Nursing.
Description: Respiratory muscle strength was examined in 74 healthy subjects between 50 and 80 years old. The effect of learning over four weekly visits was quantified and the relationships between respiratory muscle strength and age, gender, lean body mass, peripheral muscle strength, and activity level were examined.

Respiratory muscle strength was measured as maximal inspiratory pressure (PI$\sb\□rm max)□$ and maximal expiratory pressure (PE$\sb\□rm max)□$, after the technique of Black and Hyatt (1969). Lean body mass was measured by skin fold thicknesses, bioelectrical impedance analysis, and in 21 subjects, underwater weighing was performed. Peripheral muscle strength was measured by handgrip strength, and activity level was measured by use of the Lifelong Physical Activity Questionnaire. Repeated measures ANOVA with post-hoc analysis was used to examined reliability of the measure of respiratory muscle strength. Correlation coefficients were calculated to evaluate relationships between variables.

Results indicated that PI$\sb\□rm max □$and PE$\sb\□rm max □$declined in females but not in males in this sample. A significant learning effect was noted for PI$\sb\□rm max □$which stabilized by the third week. No learning effect was noted in the measurement of PE$\sb\□rm max.□$ Significant relationships were noted between handgrip strength and PI$\sb\□rm max □$(r =.53) and PE$\sb\□rm max □$(r =.49). In subjects in the seventh decade of life, moderate correlations were noted between current level of leisure activity and PI$\sb\□rm max □$(r =.40) and PE$\sb\□rm max □$(r =.41) and also between current level of household activity and PI$\sb\□rm max □$(r =.46) and PE$\sb\□rm max □$(r =.54).
Notes: Source: Dissertation Abstracts International, Volume: 53-12, Section: B, page: 6216.

Thesis (PH.D.)--UNIVERSITY OF ILLINOIS AT CHICAGO, HEALTH SCIENCES CENTER, 1992.

School code: 0806.