| forced expiratory time | The time taken to expire a given volume or a given fraction of vital capacity during measurement of forced vital capacity; subscripts specify the exact parameters measured. (05 Mar 2000) |
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| apneic pause | Cessation of air flow for more than 10 seconds. See: sleep apnea. (05 Mar 2000) |
| pause | 1. A temporary stop or rest; an intermission of action; interruption; suspension; cessation. 2. Temporary inaction or waiting; hesitation; suspence; doubt. "I stand in pause where I shall first begin." (Shak) 3. In speaking or reading aloud, a brief arrest or suspension of voice, to indicate the limits and relations of sentences and their parts. 4. In writing and printing, a mark indicating the place and nature of an arrest of voice in reading; a punctuation point; as, teach the pupil to mind the pauses. 5. A break or paragraph in writing. "He writes with warmth, which usually neglects method, and those partitions and pauses which men educated in schools observe." (Locke) 6. A hold. See 4th Hold. Synonym: Stop, cessation, suspension. Origin: F, fr. L. Pausa. See Pose. Source: Websters Dictionary (01 Mar 1998) |
| respiratory pause | Cessation of air flow for less than 10 seconds. See: sleep apnea. (05 Mar 2000) |
| compensatory pause | The pause following an extrasystole, when the pause is long enough to compensate for the prematurity of the extrasystole; the short cycle ending with the extrasystole plus the pause following the extrasystole together equal two of the regular cycles. (05 Mar 2000) |
| postextrasystolic pause | The somewhat prolonged cycle immediately following an extrasystole. (05 Mar 2000) |
| preautomatic pause | A temporary pause in cardiac activity before an automatic pacemaker escapes. See: escape. (05 Mar 2000) |
| sinus pause | A spontaneous interruption in the regular sinus rhythm, the pause lasting for a period that is not an exact multiple of the sinus cycle. See: sinus arrest, sinus standstill. (05 Mar 2000) |
| maximal expiratory flow rate | <chest medicine, physiology> Measurement of rate of airflow during the first liter expired after the first 200 ml have been exhausted during a forced vital capacity determination. Common abbreviations are MEFR, FEF 202-1200, and fef 0.2-1.2. Acronym: MEFR (21 Jun 2000) |
| maximal expiratory flow-volume curve | <chest medicine> Curves depicting maximal expiratory flow in liters/second at each point of lung inflation (expressed in liters or percentage of forced vital capacity) during a forced vital capacity determination. Common abbreviation is mefv. (12 Dec 1998) |
| peak expiratory flow | The maximum flow at the outset of forced expiration, which is reduced in proportion to the severity of airway obstruction, as in asthma. (05 Mar 2000) |
| peak expiratory flow rate | Measurement of the maximum rate of airflow attained during a forced vital capacity determination. Common abbreviations are pefr and pfr. (12 Dec 1998) |
| positive end-expiratory pressure | A technique used in respiratory therapy in which airway pressure greater than atmospheric pressure is achieved at the end of exhalation by introduction of a mechanical impedance to exhalation. (05 Mar 2000) |
| negative end-expiratory pressure | A subatmospheric pressure at the airway at the end of expiration. (05 Mar 2000) |
| expiratory | <physiology> Pertaining to, or employed in, the expiration or emission of air from the lungs; as, the expiratory muscles. Source: Websters Dictionary (01 Mar 1998) |