Lung physiology Flashcards
What does the respiratory pump do?
Generates a negative intra-alveolar pressure- moves 5 litres/ minute.
What is transpulmonary pressure? Rib movements?
Difference in pressure between the inside the outside of the lung (alveolar- intrapleural pressure.)
Pump and water handle.
Most important inspiratory muscle during normal quiet breathing? Impulses stimulating contraction via phrenic nerve arising from where?
Diaphragm.
C3, 4 and 5
External intercostal muscles activated by what? As thorax expands, transpulmonary pressure does what?
Motor neurones in the intercostal nerves. Becomes more positive.
Expiration at rest is what kind of process? Forced expiration from what?
Passive- relies only on relaxation of external intercostal muscles, diaphragm and elastic recoil of lungs.
Internal intercostal and abdominal muscles contract- diaphragm further up into thorax decreasing thoracic volume.
Which airway provides the greatest resistance?
Trachea- smaller surface area than all bronchioles.
What is dead space? Occurs where?
Volume of air not contributing to ventilation- around 175ml in total. Between the alveoli and capillaries.
What 7 layers must O2 diffuse from alveoli into pulmonary capillaries and CO2 in opposite direction?
Alveolar epithelium– tissue interstitial– capillary endothelium– plasma layer– red cell membrane– red cell cytoplasm–haemoglobin binding.
To be most efficient, what must be available to each alveolus? Mismatching known as what?
Correct proportion of ventilation and perfusion.
Ventilation- perfusion inequality.
What is the main effect of this inequality? What other factor affects this?
Partial pressure of oxygen is decreased in systemic-arterial blood.
Gravitational effects- to increase filling of blood vessels at bottom of the lung.
Two extremes of this inequality?
1) Ventilated alveoli but no blood supply due to e.g. blood clot= dead space.
2) Shunt= blood flow but no blood supply due to collapsed alveoli.
What is hypoxic pulmonary constriction?
Mucous plug blocks small airways– decrease in alveolar PO2 and in area around– vasoconstriction– diverts blood away from poorly ventilated area.
Second response used to improve ventilation- perfusion mismatch? Due to what?
Local bronchoconstriction.
Local decrease in blood flow– less systemic CO2 and decrease in partial pressure of CO2– airflow to areas of lung with better perfusion.
Nomenclature: little ‘a’ means what? Big ‘A’ means what? 7 key terms and meanings?
Arterial. Alveolar. PaCO2: arterial CO2. PACO2: Alveolar CO2. PaO2: arterial O2. PAO2: Alveolar O2. PIO2: Pressure of inspired O2. V̇A: Alveolar ventilation. V̇CO2: CO2 production.
What shape is an oxygen dissociation curve? What does the plateau provide?
Sigmoid shaped. An excellent safety factor- even significant limitation of lung function– almost normal oxygen saturation of haemoglobin.
Shift to right means what affinity for oxygen? Occurs when? CO has what effect on curve?
Low affinity. During increase in temperature and a decrease in pH.
Shifted to the left- decreases unloading of O2 into tissues.
How is arterial CO2 (PaCO2) calculated?
By dividing partial pressure of CO2 by alveolar ventilation= kVCO2/V̇A.
% of CO2 carried by haemoglobin? Forms what? % dissolved in plasma? % as bicarbonate?
23%. Carbaminohaemoglobin.
10%.
60-65%
What is the bicarbonate buffer reaction?
CO2 combines with H2O using carbonic anhydrase to form carbonic acid- this dissociates into HCO3 and H+ rapidly without enzyme assistance.
HCO3- moves out of RBCs for what? H+ binds to what? Released when? CO2 goes where?
Chloride ions via a transporter. Deoxyhaemoglobin- when passing through lungs, combines with HCO3 which forms CO2 and H2O using carbonic anhydrase.
CO2 is expired.
The pH of bodily fluids is regulated by what 3 main buffering systems?
Intracellular and extracellular buffers, the lungs eliminating CO2 and renal HCO3- reabsorption and H+ elimination.
What happens when someone hyperventilates? Known as what?
CO2 cannot be expired due to inadequate ventilation– partial pressure increases– more H+= respiratory acidosis.