The use of spirometry testing prior to cardiac surgery may impact the Society of Thoracic Surgeons risk prediction score: a prospective study in a cohort of patients at high risk for chronic lung disease.

Objectives: Chronic lung disease is a significant comorbidity in patients undergoing cardiac surgery. Chronic lung disease is currently being classified and reported to the Society of Thoracic Surgeons database by using either clinical interview or spirometric testing. We sought to compare the chronic lung disease classification captured by the 2 methods.