Concord Respiratory and Sleep Medicine provides a comprehensive suite of services and outpatient clinics for patients who have conditions that affect the respiratory system and/or their sleep.
Outpatient Clinics
Patients will require a valid referral from a GP or another medical specialist.
Our subspeciality clinics include airways (for chronic obstructive pulmonary disease and asthma), interstitial lung disease, lung nodule and lung cancer, smoking cessation, bronchiectasis, primary ciliary dyskinesia, tuberculosis, pleural disease, neuromuscular/respiratory disease, respiratory failure, sleep disorders and sleep apnoea.
Our pulmonary rehabilitation team provide tailored exercise and education to help people with chronic lung conditions manage their disease and improve their quality of life.
Make a referral
A referral from a general practitioner or specialist is required. Visit Making a referral for details.
Respiratory Function Laboratory
Our Respiratory Function Laboratory uses state of the art testing equipment with highly trained scientific staff to assist in the screening and monitoring of lung function. We also conduct occupational and travel assessments, testing of exercise tolerance and preoperative screening.
SydneyConnect Image: Respiratory function test
A respiratory function test is a non-invasive diagnostic investigation which assesses your lungs. These tests measure airflow, lung volumes, gas exchange, and/or the response to a stimulus such as exercise.
During the tests, you will breathe into a mouthpiece and be given specific instructions.
These tests often require a maximal effort for accurate results to be obtained. The procedure may be repeated several times to ensure accuracy. You may be asked to inhale a bronchodilator during the test to measure how your lung responds.
All tests performed on your visit are specifically requested by your doctor and are important to assess your lung function.
Spirometry
This test measures how hard and fast you can fully inhale and exhale in a single breath. This is the most common test we perform. This test is useful for screening and monitoring airway function.
Diffusing capacity of carbon monoxide (DLCO)
This test measures how efficiently oxygen transfers from your lungs and into your blood.
Lung volumes
This test measures the total volume of air within your lungs. You will sit inside a clear, airtight box for a short time and perform a specific breathing manoeuvre.
Respiratory muscle function
These tests assess the strength of your breathing muscles by measuring how strong you can inhale and exhale as well as how well you can breathe while lying down.
Skin prick allergy test
This is a test used to assess if you are allergic to specific airborne allergens. During this test, a small amount of allergen will be placed onto your forearm, and a small device will be used to prick the top layer of the skin. A red raised bump will appear on the skin if you are allergic and we will monitor any response for up to 15 minutes. We test 14 different allergens, such as mould, dust mites, pet hair and grasses.
Six-minute walk test
This is a functional exercise test to assess how far you can walk in six minutes on flat ground. Our scientists will measure your heart rate and oxygen levels during the test. Please wear comfortable footwear for this test.
Arterial blood gas (ABG)
During this test, a small blood sample is taken from the artery in your wrist to measure levels of oxygen, carbon dioxide and acidity of your blood. The test is performed by highly trained staff.
Cardiopulmonary exercise test (CPET)
This test assesses how your heart, lungs and muscles respond to exercise. You will exercise on a bike while wearing a full face mask, ECG monitor, oxygen monitor and blood pressure cuff. An arterial blood gas sample will also be taken before and at the end of exercise. Please wear comfortable clothing and footwear for this test.
Bronchial challenge test
This test will assess your airway sensitivity. During this test, you will inhale either dry air (eucapnic voluntary hyperventilation) or mannitol while a scientist continually monitors your airways. This test is useful in detecting asthma.
Hypoxic challenge test (HAST)
This test will assess how you respond to low oxygen levels that replicate those you would experience on a commercial aircraft flight. You will breathe a gas mixture with 15 per cent oxygen (usual air is 21 per cent) through a mouthpiece for up to 20 minutes and an arterial blood gas sample will be taken.
Physiological shunt studies
This test will assess if your blood is receiving adequate oxygen. You will breathe in 100 per cent oxygen through a mouthpiece up to 20 minutes and an arterial blood sample will be taken.
Fractional exhaled nitric oxide test (FeNO)
This test will check for airway inflammation by measuring the level of nitric oxide in your exhaled breath.
This test will assess the mechanical properties of your lungs by breathing normally into a mouthpiece. This is useful for detecting and monitoring airway function.
Cilia function testing
This test will take one hour and will involve a consultation and medical history review. Some simple breathing tests will be conducted and then some cells will be taken from the inside of the nose with a small brush which will then be analysed under a microscope. Results will be available six to eight weeks after the test following review by our pathology colleagues.
How to access
Visit Getting here for details on how to get to the Respiratory Function Laboratory at Concord Hospital.
We use the latest measurement systems that are prepared and monitored by both highly trained scientific and nursing staff.
Services include daytime and overnight in-lab studies as well as home sleep studies, for the investigation and monitoring of a broad range of sleep-related health concerns.
Our laboratory consists of six purpose-built private rooms.
SydneyConnect Image: Sleep study test
A sleep study is used to diagnose, monitor and treat conditions that may be affecting your sleep. It is an overnight test that monitors your breathing, oxygen levels, brain and muscle activity while you sleep.
To measure these, small sensors are attached to your head, face, chest and legs. These are easily removed the next morning.
The preparation and placement of these sensors takes up to 40-minutes and are arranged so that they will not interfere with your normal sleep.
We endeavour to start the sleep study as close as possible to your usual bedtime and the study will be concluded by 6am the following morning.
In most cases, once our staff remove the sensors you will be able to go home.
Our trained staff will continually monitor the information being collected in the laboratory overnight. That data is then analysed and reported by a Sleep Physician.
A sleep study performed in the home is like the overnight in-lab study, but conducted on a smaller, mobile device.
You will be required to present to the laboratory in the afternoon of the study so that the sensors can be attached to your head, face, chest and legs. This takes up to 40 minutes.
You then return to your usual routine, sleep that night in your own bed and remove the sensors the next morning.
All instructions will be given when you attend the laboratory.
You will return the equipment the next day so that we can download the data for analysis and reporting.
While the test is not continually monitored by our staff and is not as comprehensive as studies conducted in the laboratory, these studies can be very effective for screening for certain sleep conditions.
Diagnostic sleep studies
This is an initial screening study to assess your typical night’s sleep.
Treatment studies with pressure titration (Continuous Positive Airway Pressure or CPAP; Bilevel Positive Airway Pressure or BPAP; Adaptive-servo ventilation or ASV; Average Volume Assured Pressure Support or AVAPS)
Following a diagnostic screening study, your doctor may request another test which trials your response to a support device such as a CPAP machine. The study will be the same as the diagnostic sleep study; however, you may also be fitted with a nasal or face mask and receive some education on how the device operates. During the study, the overnight operators will trial different settings on the device to determine which is the best to suit your condition.
Oxygen titration studies
In some cases, the addition of oxygen via nasal prongs can support sleep. In these studies, you will conduct a standard diagnostic study, but with nasal prongs and the overnight staff will adjust the correct setting during sleep.
Studies with mandibular devices (Mandibular Advancement Splint)
Support of the jaw with a MAS can be very effective in improving sleep quality in certain circumstances. The study will be conducted as per a diagnostic study, but with a fitted MAS in place.
Daytime sleep and vigilance testing (Multiple Sleep Latency Test or MSLT; Maintenance of Wakefulness Test or MWT)
To test for excessive sleepiness, MSLT and MWT’s are conducted during the day in the lab. They consist of five “naps” every two hours to see how quickly you fall asleep during the day. Typically, you will have an overnight study the night before, so will already have all the required leads connected. You will be able to go home once all the leads are removed after the 5th nap, typically before 5pm.
Actigraphy
For this test, you will wear a monitor on your wrist that collect data about when you are awake and when you are asleep. We will analyse the data which helps diagnose sleep disorders and/or monitor progress with treatment.
How to access
Visit Getting here for details on how to get to the Sleep Studies Laboratory at Concord Hospital.
If you are being referred by a physician within the Sydney Local Health District, a preliminary result will be available immediately upon completion of the test. A final copy of the report including a physician's interpretation will be available within five business days for Respiratory and approximately one month for Sleep.
If you are being referred by a physician outside of Sydney Local Health District, a final copy of the report including a physician's interpretation will be sent to your doctor within five business days for Respiratory and approximately one month for Sleep
Patients that are eligible for Medicare are bulk billed. If you are ineligible for Medicare, please contact us for further information.
Respiratory Function Laboratory: 02 9767 6712
Sleep Studies Laboratory: 02 9767 5610
Interventional and Pleural Services
SydneyConnect Image: Interventional and Pleural Services
Our world-class interventional pulmonology team provide a full range of diagnostic and management interventional procedures including flexible and rigid bronchoscopy, airway laser and stent insertion, linear and radial endobronchial ultrasound, lung cryobiopsy, and cone-beam CT-guided endobronchial lung nodule biopsy.
Our pleural team perform pleural procedures including pleural ultrasound, diagnostic and therapeutic thoracentesis, medical pleuroscopy, and insertion of long-term indwelling pleural catheters.
