Lec 32 Respiratory mechanics Flashcards
What are the two major forces to overcome to inhale
- elasticity: lungs and chest wall resist stretch, passively return to equilibrium after expanded or compressed
- resistance: viscosity of inhaled air, flow dependent airway resistance
What two proteins are responsible for the elastic properties of lungs?
- collagen
- elastin
What two forces oppose each other in lung to keep it in equilibrium
lung tissue elastic recoil = force inward wanting to collapse
chest wall = exerts force outward wanting to expand
What is compliance? its relationship to elasticity?
- measure of stiffness, an intrinsic property of lung or chest wall that depends on amount of elastic tissue
- measured as change in volume per unit change in pressure
- compliance is inversely correlated with elastance
What is the equation for compliance?
Compliance = ΔV/ΔP
How is airway pressure measured?
- in terms of atmosphere pressure [zero]
- above Patm is positive
- below Patm is negative
What is transmural pressure?
- pressure across the aloveolar wall
- transmural P = intra-alveolar P - extra-alveolar P
What is extra-alveolar pressure?
intrapleural pressure – the space between lungs and chest wall
How to measure lung compliance experimentally?
- excised lung placed in jar
- space outside lung mimics intrapleural pressure
- vacuum pump simulated changed in intrapleural pressure
- vol of lung measured by spirometer
- lung inflated by increasing negative pressure outside
- lung deflated by reducing negative pressure outside
- slope of P vs V is compliance
What is hysteresis? what causes it?
- difference in pressure required for inflation compared to deflation
- lung is more compliant during expiration than inspiration [high slope, bigger volume for same pressure]
- caused by surface tension at liquid-air interface
Is lung more compliant during expiration or inspiration?
expiration
What is law of laplace for alveoli?
P = 2T/r P = collapsing pressure on alveolus T = surface tension r = radius
Does a smaller alveolus or larger alveolus have higher collapsing pressure?
smaller alveolus
What is surfactant?
- reduces surface tension and thus collapsing pressure at air-liquid interface
- its an amphipathic phospholipid - one end hydrophilic and one end hydrophobic
- improves lung compliance
2 consequences of surfactant reducing surface tension
- stabilizes alveoli against collapse
- promotes compliance –> easier expansion/inspiration, less work to breath
What is the equation for respiratory system compliance
C respiratory system = C lung + C chest wall
How does compliance of respiratory system compare to that of chest wall and lung?
- chest wall and lung have equivalent compliance [same slope]
- combined compliance of respiratory system is less that of other structure alone
What is FRC?
- functional residual capacity
- the resting/equilibrium volume present in lung after normal breath exhaled
- FRC = ERV + RV
What is residual volume [RV]?
x
What is expiratory reserve volume [ERV]?
x
What is tidal volume [TV]?
x
What is inspiratory reserve volume [IRV]?
x