PHYSIO Flashcards
physiological functions of the respiratory system regarding the transport of O2 and CO2
CO2 is always being produced in the tissues and even though more of it can be stored in the body compared to O2, they are kept in equilibrium
ventilation
V= f x TV
- f= frequency (breaths/minute)
- TV= Tidal Volume (L/breath)
- analogous to blood flow (same units as CO)
- performed by ventilatory apparatus (conductive and respiratory zones)
branching system of airways
branches 23 times leading to 300,000,000 alveolar sacs
trachea–> bronchi–> bronchioles–> respiratory bronchioles–> alveolar ducts–> alveolar sacs
conductive zone
first 16 branches serving as a transportation route without aiding in oxygen diffusion (trachea- cartilaginous rings for structural support, bronchi, bronchioles-terminal are the smallest airway without gas exchange or alveoli)
*ciliated with mucuous secreted by goblet cells to carry ingested particles to mouth
alveolar, vascular and tissue compartments
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ideal gas law
PV= nRT (for dry gas)
- a transfusion will increase n so V and P both increase
- closed system- V is indirectly proportional to P
VL= 1.07 Vsp (corrected for lung and spirometer)
*increased volume in lung is due to warmer temperature and water vapor influence
Henry’s law of gas solubility
[cg] = alpha Pi
*the concentration of a dissolved gas at equilibrium is proportional to the partial pressure of the gas about the solution
partial pressure
Pi= niRT/V
- fractional contribution of that gas to the total pressure
- Dalton’s law- sum of the partial pressure of all the gases in the mixture equals the total gas pressure
- when dissolved in a liquid, gas does not exert pressure (dissolved gases do not exert pressure)
fractions of gases in air and in blood
dry gas fraction- Fi= ni/nt
- ni= moles of ith gas, nt= total moles in gas
- air is a mixture of molecules
spirometer
measures ventilation bu collecting expired gas or adding TVs for a minute (N= 7.5 L/min)
*during strenuous exercise, ventilation may increase to 120 L/min as both TV and f increase
ATPS, BTPS, STPD
ATPS (Ambient)= 25 C, 760 mmHg, 24 mmHg (saturated with water vapor
BTPS (Body)= 37 C, 760 mmHg, 47 mmHg (air in lungs always saturated with water vapor)
water vapor pressure is a function of temperature
STPD (Standard)= 0 C, 760 mmHg, 0 mmHg (dry)
4 major components of the respiratory system
- ventilatory apparatus
- pulmonary gas exchanger
- pulmonary circulatory system
- tissue gas exchanger
smoking and mucous
smoking leads to a hypersecretion of mucous by goblet cells which is heavy and thus settles at the bottom of the lung along with carcinogens and microorganisms (leads to smoker’s cough which is trying to help the person get it out)
respiratory zone
last 7 branches which help with exchange between gas and blood (respiratory bronchioles, alveolar ducts- cylindrical and elongated, alveolar sacs- spherical and covered with 1000 pulmonary capillaries each)
- Type I alveolar epithelial cells–> line alveoli
- Type III alveolar cells: sufactant (lipo-protein with DPPC) coating inner alveolar surface to lower surface tension facilitating inhalation and increasing mechanical stability
- Macrophages engulf foreign material
what oxygen must cross to be diffused into the blood:
surfactant-coated alveolar epithelium–> the alveolar interstitial space–> the capillary epithelium–> the plasma–> the RBC membrane–> combines with hemoglobin
pulmonary artery and pulmonary vein
artery: brings mixed venous blood from the right heart
vein: carries oxygenated blood back to the left heart (blood is a mixture of blood that has equilibrated with alveolar gas and a small amount of blood with the composition of mixed venous blood)
alveolar dead space
alveoli that are ventilated but not perfused
trapped volume
gas in the alveoli in which the alveoli may be perfused but not ventilated
respiratory quotient and respiratory exchange ratio
RQ: ratio of tissue metabolic production of CO2 and consumption of O2
RQ= CO2/O2 where CO2 and O2 refer to the TISSUE
RE: measured by analysis of inspired and expired gas at the lung
RE= CO2/O2 where CO2 and O2 refer to the LUNG
capnography
measures CO2 levels (you breathe through it)
*oxygenation vs. ventilation
oxygenation: amount of O2 to lungs, blood and tissues which is measured by pulse oximeter or a needle to the radial artery
ventilation: measured by spirometer (MV (minute ventilation)= RR x TV(tidal volume))
how does asthma affect MV= RR x TV
asthma will decrease TV but still needs to maintain MV so RR increases but eventually the muscles will tire out so eventually MV will decrease
lung as a negative pressure pump
pressure in the intrapleural space is decreased and lung inflates
*can also be inflated by application of positive pressure from a non-invasive positive pressure machine like for sleep apnea (pressure gradient is established)
pneumothorax
pressure in the intrapleural space is normally less than atmospheric but when there is a wound, intrapleural pressure rises up to atmospheric pressure and the lung collapses
*lung collapses inward while chest wall will spring outward
muscles of respiration during eupnea, hyperpnea and strenuous exercise
eupnea (7.5 L/min): inspiration by diaphragm and expiration by passive recoil
hyperpnea (deeper ans faster with active ispiration and expiration- 120 L/min): inspiration by external intercostals (ribs up and out)
strenuous exercise: accessory muscles reduces resistance to airflow; expiration by internal intercostals which depress ribs down and in and the abdominal muscles which expel air out
what keeps the diaphragm alive?
C3, C4 and C5
alveolar pressure at the end of expiration:
0 cm H2O
what hypoventilation and hyperventilation lead to:
hypoventilation: alveolar hypoxia and hypercapnea respiratory academia due to increased CO2 levels
hyperventilation: alveolar hypocapnea and respiratory alkalosis due to decreased CO2 levels
alveolar, intrapleural and external pressures
alveolar: less than atmospheric pressure during inspiration but greater than atmospheric pressure during expiration; equal to atmospheric pressure when breath is held at any lung volume with no air movement
intrapleural: space outside of the lung but within the chest wall and is fluid-filled (contraction of diaphragm exerts expansive force on intrapleural space decreasing its pressure making it more negative and acting to inflate the lung)
external: constant unless a weight is placed on chest referred to as body surface pressure
transmural pressures
internal minus external pressure (Pt= Pl + Pc= P alv- Patm)
- outwardly directed= positive
- inwardly directed= negative
lung: Pl= Palv- Ppl (pleural space)
chest wall: Pc= Ppl - Patm
pressures at mechanical equilibrium
Pt = 0 Pl= -Pc Patm= o
static compliance and compliance
static compliance: volume the lung and chest wall will assume for a given transmural pressure when the elastic vessels are at mechanical equilibrium with no air moving (muscle activity interferes with its measurement)
compliance: relationship between transmural P and volume of the lung (change in volume/change in transmural pressure or alveolar pressure)
* system consists of two compliances in series–> lung and chest wall in which the transmural pressure across them are additive
why do we separate lung compliance from chest wall compliance?
because decreased total compliance could be due either to the properties of the lung or to chest wall
chest wall compliance
Cc= change in volume/ change in Pc (which is the change in Ppl or simply Ppl-Patm)
*static pulmonary compliance curves
End- expiratory volume (FRC): Pc= -Pl meaning Pt=0 and is at equilibrium (elastic forces exerted by the lung and chest wall are equal and opposite)
End-inspiratory volume: lung is expanded to the mechanical resting position of the chest wall where Pc=0 so only the elastic force of the lung opposes inspiration
what happens to Ppl with larger degrees of inflation?
Ppl becomes more positive
*occurs when muscles are relaxed and weight is placed onto the spirometer
*increasing volume during inspiration will cause P around the lung to increase (since inspiration is propagated by a negative intrapleural P) but the curve is not linear and will level off since the lung gets stiffer the more inflated it is and thus increasing P around lung will not increase V in lung as drastically
*emphysema
increased lung compliance making it difficult to exhale
*increased C= increased FRC and TLC
*since an inhibitor of an inhibitor is present leading to the destruction of alveolar septae, merging of adjacent alveoli and the formation of large blebs with overall loss of alveolar surface area and elastic recoil
fibrosis
decreased lung compliance making it difficult to inspire
*decreased C= decreased FRC and TLC
*lungs have become stiff due to pneumonconioses induced by inhalation of dust, asbestos, coal, silica and other toxic mineral particles leading to formation of granulomatous and fibrous tissue so volume in lung does not change as much with increasing pressure
*emphysema mechanism
- smoking leads to increased neutrophil production in attempts to remove inhaled particles
- proteases are released by neutrophils
- proteases are normally inhibited by alpha 1-antitrypsin but SMOKING INHIBITS THE INHIBITOR ALPHA 1-ANTITRYPSIN
- uninhibited proteases digest connective tissue (elastin and collagen) of lung
- increased lung compliance
air-filled and saline-filled lung compliance
saline inflation: less recoil P since air-liquid interface is eliminated, abolishing recoil P due to surface tension (increased compliance traps air making it harder to exhale)
air inflation without surfactant: higher recoil pressure so compliance is decreased due to inwardly directed surface tension forces at the air-water interface
surfactant and result of its deficiency
made of insoluble lipoprotein and dipalmitoyl lecithin which lowers the surface tension of the lung and increased compliance
- deficiency would increase surface tension and increased elastic recoil of alveoli leading to deflation of lung (seen in respiratory distress syndrome in which babies are unable to keep their lungs inflated)
- also leads to emptying of smaller alveoli into one (unstable)
atelectasis
partial collapse of the lung but prevented by surfactant’s ability to stabilize alveoli
Laplace’s law
if two bubbles have the same surface tension, the smaller bubble will have a larger internal pressure
p= 2T/r
- alveoli of different sizes would have different transmural pressures
- HOWEVER< the surface tension of alveoli with surfactant increases with increasing inflation volumes to stabilize alveolar structure
FRC and RV
FRC- where lung and chest wall are at equilibrium (Pt=0 and Pc = -Pl)
RV- little bit of air in lungs even after expiration
duration of inspiration and expiration
inspiration= 1/3 of time expiration= 2/3 of time
when does maximum flow occur?
minimum Palv at mid-inspiration and maximum Palv at mid-expiration
intrapleural pressure during the measurement of chest wall compliance
swings positive even though it is negative during inspiration
- intrapleural pressure becomes positive when muscles are relaxes and weight is placed onto spirometer
- with larger degrees of inflation, Ppl becomes more positive
small airway disease and its effect on dynamic compliance
mucous plugs or inflammatory swelling will increase resistance causing dynamic compliance to decrease and have a greater discrepancy from static compliance (less flow for a given pressure change–> less air inhaled per breath–> decreased Cdyn at higher breathing rates)
*compliance is actually more of a measure of resistance since it measures tissue elastic properties
small airway disease and its effect on TV and RR
increased R will cause decreased TV at higher RR
turbulent and laminar flow in the airways
laminar: in trachea (Re 3000)