Influence of ocarina practices on lung function of healthy middle-aged females in Korea.
Jeong-Yun Baek, Joong-Hwi Kim, Chan-Myeong Kim
PMID 30858652WHAT IT FOUND
Ocarina club members had higher one-second exhalation and exhalation ratio percent predicted than non-practitioners, while total forced breath did not differ.
In 70 healthy Korean women aged 40 and above, this one-time comparison is not proof that ocarina improves lung function.
Key findings
01Ocarina club members had significantly higher FEV1 percent predicted (98.89 ± 10.48) than non-practitioners (83.40 ± 11.36).
02Ocarina club members had significantly higher FEV1/FVC percent predicted (114.85 ± 7.27) than non-practitioners (99.16 ± 11.29).
03FVC percent predicted did not differ significantly (86.13 ± 7.75 vs 84.58 ± 10.64).
STILL TO COME
How it was doneWhat they foundWhat it means for PTs
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What it does not show
Only 70 participants were studied, and all were women aged 40 and above, so the authors state the results cannot be generalised. The groups were selected by ocarina experience rather than randomised, so the study cannot show that starting ocarina practice caused the differences. The study measured lung function once and did not test change over time. The authors state they cannot identify how long ocarina practice is needed for FEV1 and FEV1/FVC to increase.
Declared interests
No funding and no conflicts of interest were declared.
The easy way to misread this
Do not conclude that ocarina practice caused the higher one-second exhalation and exhalation ratio values. The study compared existing club members with non-practitioners at one time, and it did not randomise participants or measure lung function before practice, so the difference may reflect who joined the club rather than ocarina practice.