New digital peak flow meters
17 May 2005

New electronic peak flow meters could make it easier for people with asthma to monitor their symptoms and prevent attacks.

Many people with asthma use peak flow meters to take daily readings of their lung function. A decrease in peak flow levels can be a warning to someone with asthma that they are heading for an attack.

To take a reading people blow into a peak flow meter - a cylindrical device that gives a reading which is then recorded as part of a personal asthma action plan. Peak flow meters are highly effective, but at up to 20cm long they are not particularly portable and results have to be transcribed to a chart by hand: as a result they are sometimes used only erratically by people with asthma.

A new compact device which is smaller than a standard metered dose inhaler and records peak flow electronically could encourage people to take readings more regularly and remove margins for error, say health professionals.

The pocket-sized 'Piko' (pictured) logs peak flow levels, along with the time they were taken, which can then be downloaded to a computer for tracking. The device is now available on prescription in the UK.

'Many callers ask about smaller peak flow meters that they can fit in their pockets or handbags,' said Katie Shepherd, who manages the Asthma UK Adviceline. 'So this new device is definitely fulfilling a demand.

'As respiratory professionals we welcome anything that makes it easier for people with asthma to monitor their symptoms and so help to reduce the incidence of asthma attacks,' she added.