lecture 8: breathlessness and control of breathing Flashcards
what are the functions of the respiratory muscles?
- maintaining PO2, PCo2,PH
- defence of the airways and the lungs
- exercise
- speech
- control of intra thoracic and infra abdominal pressures
what controls breathing?
breathing is controlled by the medulla, the cortex and the reflexes
show a graph of tidal breathing :
what does it show?
- the graph shows a single resp cycle
- VT (tidal volume)
- TTHOT (total time for resp cycle)
-VE (minute ventilation)
(tidal volume x frequency
***how to work out the frequency?
1/ TTOT
what does V.E = VT/T1 X T1/TOTT show?
- minute ventilation = tidal volume x frequency
can also be seen as
VE = VT x 60/TTOT
TTOT can be split into inspiratory TI and expiratory TE
VT/T1 = mean inspiratory flow
how powerfully the muscles contract
T1/TOTT = inspiratory duty cycle
the proportion of time actually inspiring
how to calculate inspiratory duty cycle?
T1/TTOT
what is minute ventilation in normal subjects?
normal VE - 6L/min
normal tidal volume - ).5 L
normal inspiratory duty cycle - 40%
how does use of nose clip affect breathing rate
- reduces breathing rate while VE remains roughly the same but VT increases as breathing is deeper.
how does use of a tube affect breathing rate?
increases dead space which increases VE, VT and frequency to clear dead space.
what happens to tidal breathing in disease?
- Intrathoracic airways are narrowed so difficulty ventilating lungs MORE on expiration.
- Lower TV as less air can fill the lungs but compensated by a faster breathing rate (equal TI/TTOT).
- People with COPD breathe much shallower and faster but NOT harder.
- REMEMBER: people with obstructive lung disease have difficulty expiring.
where does involuntary control of breathing happen?
- the medulla
- this always overrides the behavioural centre
- responds to the metabolic demands for and producing CO2
determines a set point for Co2
The Limbic System (survival responses), frontal cortex (emotions), sensory inputs (pain, startle) and sleep (reticular formation) may influence the metabolic centre.
where does voluntary control of breathing happen?
The motor area of cerebral cortex.
Can control acts such as breath holding and singing.
***show a diagram of the organisation of breathing control: ›
what is present in the metabolic controller?
H ion receptors
what nerves are the respiratory spinal motor neurones?
the phrenic nerves
what are the 2 main feedbacks in the metabolic controller?
- Chemoreceptors in the carotid bodies sense hydrogen ion levels in the blood from levels of O2 and CO2. This feeds back to the metabolic controller and has a DOMINANT influence.
a. Removal of carotid bodies reduces response to CO2 levels by up to 40%. - The stretch and irritant receptors on the lungs can influence the metabolic control of breathing.
what is the peripheral chemoreceptor ?
- This carotid body chemoreceptor is a well vascularised bundle of cells at the junction of the internal and external carotid arteries in the neck
- This serves as the rapid response system for detecting changes in arterial PO2 and PCO2
where does the pacemaker of breathing come from?
- 10 groups of neurones in the medulla
-
what is the pre botzinger complex?
in ventro-cranial medulla, seems essential for generating the respiratory rhythm and is known as the ‘gasping centre’