TY - JOUR T1 - Spirometers JF - Breathe JO - breathe SP - 251 LP - 254 VL - 4 IS - 3 AU - F. de Jongh Y1 - 2008/03/01 UR - http://breathe.ersjournals.com/content/4/3/251.abstract N2 - Educational aims To outline the characteristics of currently available types of spirometer. To explain the requirements a spirometer should fulfil. Summary There are many spirometers on the market. They can be divided roughly into a group that primarily measures volume and a group that primarily measures flow. Quality control and calibration should be performed on a regular basis to ensure that a device (still) functions appropriately. The types have different characteristics and are optimal for different circumstances (from a simple peak-flow meter to monitor asthma at home to an ultrasonic device to measure a patient in a pulmonary function lab). In this article, the characteristics of the currently available spirometers are discussed, as well as the requirements they should fulfil. ER -