ERS/ATS WORKSHOP REPORT SERIES Human lung volumes and the mechanisms that set them

Human lung volumes and the mechanisms that set them. D.E. Leith, R. Brown. #ERS Journals Ltd 1999. ABSTRACT: Definitions of human lung volumes and the mechanisms that set them are reviewed in the context of pulmonary function testing, with attention to the distinction between functional residual capacity (FRC) and the static relaxation volume of the respiratory system, and to the circumstances in which FRC and residual volume are set by dynamic rather than by static mechanisms. Related terms, conventions, and issues are addressed, including some common semantic and conceptual difficulties, with attention to "gas trapping", "hyperinflation", and "restriction". Eur Respir J 1999; 13: 468±472. *Dept of Clinical Sciences, Kansas State University, USA. **Pulmonary and Critical Care Medicine Section, Dept of Veterans Affairs Medical Center, West Roxbury, MA, USA, and Dept of Medicine, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, USA.