estimated_peak_flow: Estimated/Expected Peak Expiratory Flow (Peak Flow) - NHANES...

In cliot: Clinical Indices and Outcomes Tools

Estimated/Expected Peak Expiratory Flow (Peak Flow) - NHANES III

Description

Calculates the estimated Peak Expiratory Flow (PEF) rate based on the Hankinson et al. (1999) equations derived from the Third National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES III). These equations stratify by age, sex, and race/ethnicity (Caucasian, African-American, Mexican-American) and use height and age polynomial regression models.

Usage

estimated_peak_flow(age, height_in, sex, race, actual_pef = NULL)

Arguments

age	Numeric. Patient age in years (Valid range: 8-80).
height_in	Numeric. Patient height in inches.
sex	String. Patient sex ("Male" or "Female").
race	String. Patient race/ethnicity ("White", "Black", "Hispanic", or "Other"). "Other" uses the Caucasian/White equation coefficients.
actual_pef	Numeric (Optional). The patient's actual measured PEF in L/min. If provided, the function calculates the percent of predicted value.

Value

A list containing:

Estimated_PEF_L_min	The predicted Peak Expiratory Flow rate in Liters per minute.
Percent_Predicted	The ratio of the actual measured PEF to the estimated PEF (if actual_pef is provided).
Method	Citation of the formula source (Hankinson 1999).

References

Hankinson JL, Odencrantz JR, Fedan KB. Spirometric reference values from a sample of the general U.S. population. Am J Respir Crit Care Med. 1999;159(1):179-187. doi:10.1164/ajrccm.159.1.9712108

Examples

# Example 1: Adult Male
# 45 years old, 70 inches (178 cm), White
# Estimated PEF: ~580-600 L/min depending on exact coeff
estimated_peak_flow(45, 70, "male", "white")

# Example 2: Child with Actual Reading
# 10 years old, 55 inches (140 cm), Black, Measured PEF 300
# Returns Estimated and % Predicted
estimated_peak_flow(10, 55, "male", "black", actual_pef = 300)

cliot documentation built on Dec. 1, 2025, 1:06 a.m.