Describe the purpose of incentive spirometry.

Incentive spirometry is a pulmonary rehabilitation tool primarily designed to encourage deep breathing and promote lung expansion. By providing visual feedback, patients are motivated to inhale deeply, which helps to increase lung volumes, improve ventilation, and prevent complications such as atelectasis (collapse of lung tissue). This is especially important after surgeries or in patients with conditions that restrict normal airflow.

The device works by having the patient inhale slowly and deeply to raise a certain volume indicator, thus encouraging them to take deeper breaths than they might otherwise do naturally. This process also aids in clearing mucus from the airways, enhances oxygenation, and assists in overall respiratory health.

In contrast, while anxiety management is important in clinical settings, it is not the primary purpose of incentive spirometry. Similarly, measuring respiratory rate is a different objective entirely and not associated with the function of the spirometer. Lastly, while incentive spirometry can have an indirect effect on coughing by improving lung capacity and reducing secretions, it does not aim to eliminate the cough reflex, which serves an important physiological role in keeping airways clear.