Mini review shows that structured light plethysmography provides a non‐contact method for evaluating breathing patterns in children

Abstract

Aim: Structured light plethysmography (SLP) is a novel light-based method that captures chest wall movements to evaluate tidal breathing. We carried out a narrative mini review of the clinical use of SLP in paediatrics.Methods: PubMed and Google Scholar were searched for papers published in English up to December 2018. This identified a methodology paper published in 2010 and eight full papers, including three paediatric studies and one paediatric case report. We also included data from ten conference abstracts and one clinical case study. Results:We found data that validated the ability of SLP to differentiate airway obstruction from tidal breathing parameters and bronchodilator responsiveness for children aged two years and over. Non-contact measurement of regional chest wall movement was a unique feature. Feasibility data were scarce and more studies are needed, especially in infants. Preliminary studies suggest that SLP has the potential to be used in cases of dysfunctional breathing and neuromuscular diseases and as a follow-up tool after lung infections or surgery.Conclusion: Structured light plethysmography has been validated to demonstrate lung function abnormality in paediatric asthma, but further studies are needed to demonstrate its benefits over current practice and how it can be used for other conditions.

Automatic non-contact monitoring of the respiratory rate of neonates using a structured light camera

“…There are non-contact measuring methods based on infrared imaging [1][2][3][4][5][6], RGB-cameras [7][8][9][10], structured light plethysmography [11][12][13], RGB-D cameras [14][15][16][17][18][19][20][21][22] as well as radar [23][24][25][26][27][28][29]. Many of these approaches have only been tested on adults, require markers, are light-dependent or are not completely automated.…”

Shedding light on the breathing difficulties of children

“…This issue of Acta Paediatrica includes a mini‐review by Lauhkonen et al. , which presents a novel technique of structured light plethysmography that can be used to assess breathing difficulties in patients of all ages. This light‐based method captures chest wall movements and abnormalities during tidal breathing.…”

“…A potential application of structured light plethysmography, which is mentioned in the mini‐review but with fewer remarks, is the assessment of dysfunctional breathing . These disorders are very common in adolescence, resulting in intermittent or chronic respiratory symptoms, and include such entities as hyperventilation and extrathoracic paradoxical vocal cord motion .…”

“…Related applications involve children with neuromuscular diseases, as suggested by Lauhkonen et al. .…”

“…When a doctor is trying to solve the clinical problems of a symptomatic child during an appointment, they also have to consider attributes such as feasibility, costs, standardisation and the predictive values of positive test results. The authors of the mini‐review acknowledge that reference data and clinical studies that weigh up the additional benefits for current clinical practice are still needed . As they say, there is a recognised need for tools to help clinicians for decision making in young children with breathing symptoms.…”