What does spirometry performed after an albuterol nebulizer treatment primarily confirm in a patient suspected of asthma?

Spirometry performed after an albuterol nebulizer treatment is primarily used to assess the reversibility of airway obstruction in patients suspected of asthma. When a patient with asthma receives albuterol, a bronchodilator, it should lead to dilation of the airways if asthma is the underlying condition. The effectiveness of this treatment is measured by spirometry, which provides objective data on lung function, specifically improvements in forced expiratory volume in one second (FEV1) or forced vital capacity (FVC).

In asthma, the primary feature is variable airway obstruction that can be reversed with bronchodilators. A significant increase in FEV1 after albuterol administration indicates that the obstruction is reversible, which is characteristic of asthma. This is an essential part of the diagnosis and management of asthma, as it helps differentiate asthma from other conditions that can also cause airway obstruction but are not reversible, such as COPD or pulmonary fibrosis.

Oxygen saturation, while relevant to the overall assessment of respiratory function, does not directly inform about the reversibility of airway obstruction. Similarly, conditions like pulmonary fibrosis involve fixed airway obstruction that does not improve with bronchodilators, and chronic carbon dioxide retention relates more to respiratory failure than the reversibility of airway obstruction. Hence, confirming reversible