The lung function test will be conducted in accordance with international standards. This applies to all of the various partial measurements involved, such as: the identification of the breath in the absence of movement, lung volume size, nasal airway patency, the distribution of gas, and the measurement of exhaled nitrogen oxide.

The measurements will take place during your child’s natural sleep. The duration of the test is around 30 minutes, but only when it can be done during a deep-sleep (non-REM) phase of the sleep cycle. The actual duration of the test then is variable and dependent on the child’s individual sleep cycle.

The measured data will then be compared with measurements taken from children with healthy lungs. Results of the lung function measurement will be shared immediately with your child’s doctor, in order to introduce or amend any treatment strategies.

Longitudinal data will be collected by way of a second measurement at the age of 1 year, con-ducted in the same manner and sequence as the first. Given that the natural sleep cycle of a one-year-old during the day is normally too short for the measurement period we need, an age-appro-priate sleeping aid (chloral hydrate) will be  administered, as is done at most Centers worldwide.

At the ages of 3 and 6, respectively, a “normal“ lung function test (Spirometry and Bodyplethys-mography) will be conducted, as is routine at the control visits for CF children.