Signal analysis and diagnostic support based on infant tidal breathing patterns

This paper presents a new concept for an automatic decision support system which can be applied to lung function diagnosis in infants. It features a new way to extract symptoms from tidal breathing flow volume loops which are then mapped onto diseases by means of an appropriate classification algorithm. The system may be used to diagnose obstructive lung diseases caused by allergic reactions (e.g. asthma) or gastroesophageal reflux which have a strongly growing incidence among German infants (it is estimated that about 1.5% of the German children population has or will develop asthma). The system also detects flow limitations caused by stenosis or malacias