To the Editors:
We are grateful to Marchand 1 for his interest in our report, “Is air travel safe for those with lung disease?” 2, and we would like to make the following response to the interesting questions he posed 1.
A total of 464 patients had resting sea-level arterial oxygen saturation measured by pulse oximetry (Sp,O2) of 92–95%. Out of these, 132 (28%) underwent hypoxic challenge testing (HCT). Current British Thoracic Society (BTS) guidelines on air travel and lung disease 3 do not recommend HCT in all of these patients, but only in those with an additional risk factor, for example forced expiratory volume in one second (FEV1) <50% predicted, restrictive lung disease or comorbidity with cardiovascular or cerebrovascular disease.
The BTS guidelines recommend that patients with arterial oxygen tension …