(Isabelle Gallant/ BC News) — Asthma may be one of the most common chronic diseases in Canada, but experts say it can be tough to diagnose.
“The best way to make a diagnosis of asthma is to have a patient do breathing tests,” Dr. Shawn Aaron, a respirologist at the Ottawa Hospital, told Dr. Brian Goldman, host of CBC’s The Dose.
The standard test is a lung function test, done using a device called a spirometer, said Aaron.
During the test, a patient’s lung capacity is measured by seeing how quickly and forcefully they can blow air into a tube.
Aaron said despite being a perfect way to diagnose asthma, lung function testing can be hard to access, “even though the test only takes 20 or 30 minutes, it’s perfectly safe, and it only costs about $40.”
Many may think of asthma as a childhood condition. Though asthma does affect more children than adults in Canada, about nine per cent of adults live with the condition, and experts say misdiagnosis and underdiagnosis are both big issues.” (…)