Arm span to height ratio is related to severity of dyspnea, reduced spirometry volumes, and right heart strain.

Background: Arm span is the closest physiologic measurement to standing height. Increased arm span to standing height ratio, therefore, indicates possible loss of height, which is a feature of aging, often resulting from osteoporosis-related vertebral collapse. We hypothesize that the discrepancy between arm span and height is associated with reduced airflow volumes, severity of dyspnea, and right-sided cardiac structural changes in older individuals with symptoms of dyspnea.

Method: Patients with conditions investigated with transthoracic echocardiography for suspected heart failure were invited to participate in our study. All subjects were evaluated with a clinical history and physical examination followed by measurements of arm span, standing height, weight, FEV(1), and FVC.

Results: Sixty-six subjects aged 71 +/- 10 years were recruited for our study. Arm span to height ratio was significantly negatively correlated with FEV(1) (r = - 0.464; p < 0.001), FVC (r = - 0.479; p < 0.001), and body weight (r = - 0.252; p < 0.05), and positively correlated with the New York Heart Association classification for dyspnea (rho = 0.309; p < 0.05). Female sex, steroid use, inhaled bronchodilators, orthopnea, paroxysmal nocturnal dyspnea, and right heart chamber dilatation were significantly associated with increased arm span to height ratio.

Conclusion: We have found a significant association between increased arm span to height ratio, reduced respiratory airflow volumes, increased severity of dyspnea, and echocardiographic features of pulmonary heart disease in a group of predominantly elderly subjects with multiple comorbidities. The role of arm span measurements in assessments of airflow volumes in older patients and the association between loss of height and dyspnea now deserve further evaluation.