ABSTRACT
BACKGROUND: The measurement of aerosol flow rates without obscuration of the flow is of particular concern with in vivo lung deposition studies, where precise knowledge of aerosol particle size distributions is a necessary requirement for the development of predictive correlations. This study examines the utility of an ultrasonic flow meter for such measurements and determines if a valved system can be attached to the flow meter for sampling exhaled aerosols. METHODS: The flow rate across a D-30 flow meter was compared with and without nebulization of 0.9% saline aerosols from a PARI LC Sprint nebulizer. Particle size distributions of the nebulized aerosol before and after adding the D-30 flow meter and duckbill valve were measured using a Spraytec laser diffraction system. Finally, the ability of the Thor D-30 to capture a realistic breathing profile was assessed. RESULTS: The mean ± standard error flow rates measured by the D-30 flow meter with and without nebulization were 10.4 ± 0.1 versus 10.4 ± 0.1 L/min, 66.4 ± 0.1 versus 67.2 ± 0.1 L/min, and 89.9 ± 0.1 versus 91.4 ± 0.1 L/min. The D-30 flow meter did not considerably affect the volumetric median diameter (VMD) of the aerosols, while the VMD reduced slightly by 0.65 µm at 10 L/min and 0.69 µm at 72 L/min upon the inclusion of a duckbill valve. Time-weighted average inhalation flow rates measured by D-30 flow meters placed upstream and downstream of the one-way valve agreed well, 31.9 versus 32.6 L/min, respectively. CONCLUSIONS: The D-30 flow meter can be used to accurately measure inhalation flow rates of nebulized aerosols without significantly impacting particle size distributions, and one-way duckbill valves can be used to isolate the inhalation portion of a breathing pattern to facilitate collection of exhaled doses.
Subject(s)
Aerosols , Flowmeters , Nebulizers and Vaporizers , Sodium Chloride/administration & dosage , Administration, Inhalation , Equipment Design , Humans , Particle Size , Respiration , UltrasonicsABSTRACT
The present study investigates the effect of DPI resistance and inhalation flow rates on the lung deposition of orally inhaled mannitol dry powder. Mannitol powder radiolabeled with 99mTc-DTPA was inhaled from an Osmohaler™ by healthy human volunteers at 50-70L/min peak inhalation flow rate (PIFR) using both a low and high resistance Osmohaler™, and 110-130L/min PIFR using the low resistance Osmohaler™ (n=9). At 50-70L/min PIFR, the resistance of the Osmohaler™ did not significantly affect the total and peripheral lung deposition of inhaled mannitol [for low resistance Osmohaler™, 20% total lung deposition (TLD), 0.3 penetration index (PI); for high resistance Osmohaler™, 17% TLD, 0.23 PI]. Increasing the PIFR 50-70L/min to 110-130L/min (low resistance Osmohaler™) significantly reduced the total lung deposition (10% TLD) and the peripheral lung deposition (PI 0.21). The total lung deposition showed dependency on the in vitro FPF (R2=1.0). On the other hand, the PI had a stronger association with the MMAD (R2=1.0) than the FPF (R2=0.7). In conclusion the resistance of Osmohaler™ did not significantly affect the total and regional lung deposition at 50-70L/min PIFR. Instead, the total and regional lung depositions are dependent on the particle size of the aerosol and inhalation flow rate, the latter itself affecting the particle size distribution.