For more than 50 years, the Minnesota Cystic Fibrosis Center at the University of Minnesota Masonic Children's Hospital has been providing leading lung care to patients from around the world.
If your child has been diagnosed with a lung condition such as cystic fibrosis (CF) and is under the age of two years, infant pulmonary function testing will be recommended. This study, performed under sedation in an outpatient area of the hospital, measures the size of your child’s lungs and determines how easily he or she is breathing. It provides key information to help your child’s care team make modifications to a treatment plan when needed.
Our approach
For more than 50 years, the Minnesota Cystic Fibrosis Center at the M Health Fairview Masonic Children's Hospital has been providing leading lung care to patients from around the world. Since children benefit significantly from early diagnosis and treatment, we offer comprehensive diagnostic and treatment programs.
Infant pulmonary function testing can only be done with babies when they are asleep, so your child will be mildly sedated. Once your child is asleep, a mask will be placed over his or her nose and mouth. Your child will be able to breathe normally during the study. Your care team will place an inflatable jacket around your child’s chest to help the child blow out air completely. A Plexiglas™ box will be placed around the cradle for about five minutes during the test. This will measure your child’s lung size and volume.
The infant pulmonary function test takes 20 minutes to one hour, depending on how well your child can sleep through the study. The total amount of time you are in the sedation unit is from three-to-six hours from the time sedation medications are given until your child wakes up and is ready to go home.
