The Influence of Age on Interaction between Breath-Holding Test and Single-Breath Carbon Dioxide Test

Introduction . The aim of the study was to compare the breath-holding test and single-breath carbon dioxide test in evaluation of the peripheral chemoreflex sensitivity to carbon dioxide in healthy subjects of different age. Methods . The study involved 47 healthy volunteers between ages of 25 and 85 years. All participants were divided into 4 groups according to age: 25 to 44 years (n=14), 45 to 60 years (n=13), 60 to 75 years (n=12), and older than 75 years (n=8). Breath-holding test was performed in the morning before breakfast. The single-breath carbon dioxide (SB-CO 2 ) test was performed the following day. Results . No correlation was found between age and duration of breath-holding (r=0.13) and between age and peripheral chemoreflex sensitivity to CO 2 (r=0.07). In all age groups there were no significant differences in the mean values from the breath-holding test and peripheral chemoreflex sensitivity tests. In all groups there was a strong significant inverse correlation between breath-holding test and SB-CO 2 test. Conclusion . A breath-holding test reflects the sensitivity of the peripheral chemoreflex to carbon dioxide in healthy elderly humans. Increasing age alone does not alter the peripheral ventilatory response to hypercapnia.