Am. J. Respir. Crit. Care Med., Vol 151, No. 4, Apr 1995, 1087-1092.
Effect of mouthpiece breathing on cardiorespiratory response to intense exercise
KE Bloch, J Barandun and MA Sackner
Abtielung fur Pneumologie, Universitatsspital Zurich, Switzerland.
Use of mouthpiece and noseclips after breathing pattern at rest and during
moderate exercise. Our purpose was to extend observations on mouthpiece
breathing to its effects on the cardiorespiratory response to intense
exercise and to develop and validate an algorithm for computer-assisted
analysis of breathing pattern recorded with respiratory inductive
plethysmography. Six normal men performed incremental bicycle exercise to
volitional exhaustion on two occasions with and without mouthpiece and
noseclip. ECG and breathing pattern recorded with a respiratory inductive
plethysmograph were analyzed manually and with computer assistance.
Mouthpiece breathing increased tidal volume and respiratory cycle time by
up to 63 and 33% respectively (p < 0.02) during mild exercise, but it
did not alter performance, heart rate, or breathing pattern at maximal
exercise. Mean differences between inductive plethysmographic and
spirometric tidal volumes were < 5% during validation at rest and
maximal exercise. Application of the proposed algorithm for semiautomatic
breathing pattern analysis provided significant time savings with no loss
in precision compared with manual analysis. In conclusion, in normal men,
performance and breathing pattern during maximal exercise are not altered
by a mouthpiece and noseclip, and accurate computer-assisted measurement of
ventilation from external transducers may be performed even during intense
exercise.
