Journal of Nippon Medical School = Nippon Ika Daigaku zasshi
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Dyspnea is a major clinical symptom of various respiratory diseases. However, no objective assessment of dyspnea on exertion (DOE) in elderly subjects has been established yet. Furthermore, the factors which may influence DOE in healthy elderly subjects have not yet been precisely elucidated. ⋯ The odd ratio increased with advancing age; when the value in the 65~69 year-old group was 1, the odd ratios in the 85~89 year-old and 90~94 year-old groups were in approximately 6 and 8, respectively. Similarly, the odd ratio increased parallel with reduction in MVV. From these results, we conclude that the OCD value is reliable, simple and the best method of evaluating dyspnea in elderly subjects semi-quantitatively, and both the minute ventilatory volume and age are closely related with changes in OCD values.