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Non-invasive pneuRIP testing provided instantaneous PFT results. As compared to healthy subjects, NM patients showed abnormal results with increased markers of thoracoabdominal asynchrony, WOB indices, and biphasic breathing patterns likely resulting from NM weakness.

RationalePulmonary function testing (PFT) provides diagnostic information regarding respiratory physiology. However, many forms of PFT are time-intensive and require patient cooperation. Respiratory inductance plethysmography (RIP) provides thoracoabdominal asynchrony (TAA) and work of breathing (WOB) data. pneuRIP TM is a noninvasive, wireless analyzer that provides real-time assessment of RIP via an iPad. In this study, we show that pneuRIP TM can be used in a hospital clinic setting to differentiate WOB indices and breathing patterns in children with DMD as compared to age-matched healthy subjects. MethodsRIP using the pneuRIP TM was conducted on 9 healthy volunteers and 7 DMD participants (ages 5-18) recruited from the neuromuscular clinic, under normal resting conditions over 3-5 min during routine outpatient visits. The tests were completed in less than 10 minutes and did not add excessive time to the clinic visit. Variables recorded included laboredbreathing index (LBI), phase angle (Φ) between abdomen and rib cage, respiratory rate (RR), percentage of rib cage input (RC%), and heart rate (HR). The data were displayed in histogram plots to identify distribution patterns within the normal ranges. The percentages of data within the ranges (0� Φ �30 deg.; median RC %±10%; median RR±5%; 1�LBI�1.1) were compared. Unpaired t-tests determined significance of the data between groups. Results100% patient compliance demonstrates the feasibility of such testing in clinical settings. DMD patients showed a significant elevation in Φ, LBI, and HR averages (P<0.006, P<0.002, P<0.046, respectively). Healthy subjects and DMD patients had similar BPM and RC% averages. All DMD data distributions were statistically different from healthy subjects

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