Physiology Flashcards
Q1: What is the composition of the visceral pleura?
A1: The visceral pleura is composed of thin epithelial tissue with areolar connective tissue.
Q2: What is the function of the pleural cavity?
A2: The pleural cavity is a potential space that tethers the visceral pleura to the parietal pleura. It contains pleural fluid, which allows for no friction, prevents inflammation, and is constantly pumped out by lymphatic vessels to maintain a normal volume.
Q3: What is pleurisy?
A3: Pleurisy is a condition characterized by a lot of friction between the parietal and visceral pleura due to a decreased amount of pleural fluid.
Q4: What is parietal pleura?
A4: The parietal pleura is a membrane that lines the inner surface of the chest wall, diaphragm, and mediastinum.
Q5: In which areas of the respiratory tract are mucus and ciliated epithelium absent?
A5: Mucus and ciliated epithelium are absent in the alveoli.
Q6: What does internal respiration refer to?
A6:
- refers to the intracellular mechanisms that consume oxygen (O2) and produce carbon dioxide (CO2).
- It involves gas exchange between the vascular compartment and cellular compartment.
Q7: What is external respiration?
AA7:
- External respiration is the sequence of events that lead to the exchange of oxygen (O2) and carbon dioxide (CO2) between the external environment and the cells of the body.
- It includes ventilation, exchange of gases in the alveoli and pulmonary capillaries, transport of gases in the blood, and exchange of gases between the blood and tissues.
Q8: What are the pressure changes in the lung?
A8: The pressure changes in the lung include:
Intrapulmonary or intra-alveolar pressure (Ppul)
Intrapleural pressure (Pip)
Atmospheric or barometric pressure (Patm)
Transpulmonary pressure (TP) (Ppul - Pip)
Transthoracic pressure (TTP) (Pip - Patm)
Transrespiratory pressure (TRP) (Ppul - Patm)
Q9: What factors contribute to the negative intrapleural pressure (Pip)?
A9: The negative intrapleural pressure (Pip) is due to:
Elasticity of the lungs
Surface tension
Elasticity of the chest wall
Gravity
Q1: What is ventilation?
A1: Ventilation is the mechanical process of moving air between the atmosphere and the alveolar sacs in the lungs.
Q2: What is Boyle’s Law?
A2:
- at any constant temperature, the pressure exerted by a gas varies inversely with the volume of the gas.
- This means that when the pressure of a gas increases, the volume decreases, and vice versa.
Q3: What is atmospheric pressure?
A3:
* is the pressure caused by the weight of the gas in the atmosphere on the Earth’s surface.
It is typically around 760 mmHg.
Q4: What is intra-alveolar pressure?
A4:
* Intra-alveolar pressure refers to the pressure within the lung alveoli.
It is usually the same as atmospheric pressure, around 760 mmHg.
Q5: What is intrapleural pressure?
A5:
* is the pressure exerted outside the lungs within the pleural cavity.
It is typically lower than atmospheric pressure, around -4 mmHg.
Q6: How is intrapleural fluid prevented from accumulating?
A6: through lymphatic vessels that drain the pleural cavity.
Q7: What is the significance of negative intrapleural pressure?
A7:
- Negative intrapleural pressure creates a transmural pressure gradient across the lung wall and chest wall.
- This forces the lungs to expand outward while the chest is forced to squeeze inward, contributing to the recoil mechanism.
- It also causes the pleural membranes to stick together.
Q1: What are the primary muscles involved in inspiration?
A1:
are the diaphragm and the external intercostal muscles.
Q2: What activates the diaphragm during inspiration?
A2:
the phrenic nerve, which receives input from the cerebral cortex and the ventral respiratory group (VRG) within the medulla.
Q3: How do the external intercostal muscles contribute to inspiration?
A3:
- lift the ribs and move out the sternum, increasing the volume of the thorax.
BY : - They pull the ribs outwards, increasing the thoracic cavity volume, and
- push the sternum outwards and upwards, increasing the thoracic cavity volume anteroposteriorly.
Q4: What happens to the lung size and intra-alveolar pressure during inspiration?
A4:
- During inspiration, the lung size increases, and as per Boyle’s Law, the intra-alveolar pressure decreases.
- This creates a pressure gradient that allows air to enter the lungs until the intra-alveolar pressure becomes equal to atmospheric pressure.
Q5: What happens to the three types of pressures during inspiration?
A5: During inspiration:
(i) The transpulmonary pressure (TP) increases.
(ii) The transthoracic pressure (TTP) decreases.
(iii) The transrespiratory pressure (TRP) decreases.
allwoing the lungs to expand
Q6: What are the accessory muscles involved in forced inspiration?
A6:
the pectoralis major,
pectoralis minor,
sternocleidomastoid,
scalenus anterior,
scalenus medius, and
scalenus posterior.
Q7: What is the pleural pressure during forced inspiration?
A7: The pleural pressure is around -6mmHg during forced inspiration.
Q1: What muscles are involved during forced expiration?
A1:
- Abdominal wall muscles: External oblique, internal oblique, transverse abdominis, rectus abdominis
- Internal intercostal muscles
Q2: How do the internal intercostal muscles contribute to forced expiration?
A2:
- The internal intercostal muscles, located between the ribs, pull the upper rib downwards, depressing the rib cage, which decreases the thoracic cavity volume.
- They also push the sternum and ribs inward.
Q3: How do the abdominal wall muscles contribute to forced expiration?
A3:
- Contraction of the abdominal wall muscles increases intra-abdominal pressure, which pushes upwards and backwards on the diaphragm.
- This decreases the thoracic cavity volume and increases intrapleural pressure.
Q4: What are the pressure changes during forced expiration?
A4:
- During forced expiration, the chest wall pushes inward, and the diaphragm pushes upward, resulting in a decrease in thoracic cavity volume and an increase in intrapleural pressure (Pip).
- This leads to an increase in intra-alveolar pressure (Ppul), causing air to move out of the lungs until the intra-alveolar pressure becomes equal to atmospheric pressure (Patm).
Q5: What happens to the diaphragm during forced expiration?
A5: During forced expiration, the diaphragm relaxes and moves superiorly due to the compressed abdominal contents.
Q6: Is forced expiration an active or passive process?
A6:
* Forced expiration is an active process because it involves the contraction of muscles, specifically the abdominal wall muscles.
Q1: What is surface tension?
A1:
* refers to the attraction between water molecules at the liquid-air interface.
- It is a cohesive intermolecular force interaction between water molecules on the surface.
Q2: How does surface tension contribute to the recoil of the lungs during expiration?
A2:
* Surface tension produces a force that resists the stretching of the lungs, helping the lungs recoil during expiration.
- It causes the alveoli to shrink and collapse, leading to the smallest size possible.
Q3: What happens if there is an increase in surface tension but no recoil?
A3:
I
* f there is an increase in surface tension but no recoil, the alveoli collapse, leading to unequal ventilation (air flow) to the alveoli.
- It can also pull water into the collapsed alveoli, causing pulmonary edema, thickening of the respiratory membrane, and reduced gas exchange.
Q4: What is the respiratory membrane composed of?
A4: The respiratory membrane consists of four structures:
- the alveolar wall (type I and type II alveolar cells and associated alveolar macrophages),
- the epithelial basement membrane,
- the capillary basement membrane, and
- the capillary endothelium.
Q5: What are the two types of alveolar cells?
A5:
- Type I alveolar cells: These are simple squamous epithelial cells and are most abundant.
- They are primarily involved in gas exchange, allowing oxygen to move from the alveoli into the blood and carbon dioxide to move from the blood into the alveoli.
- Type II alveolar cells: These are simple cuboidal epithelial cells and are less abundant.
- They play a role in producing a lipid-protein detergent complex called surfactant.
Q6: How is surface tension formed?
A6:
- formed due to the intermolecular attraction between water molecules at the water-air interface.
- The water molecules interact with each other through hydrogen bonds, creating a certain amount of force that results in surface tension.
Q7: How is air pushed out of the alveoli during expiration?
A7:
- Water molecules on the surface of the alveoli do not want to interact with gas. The water layer gets thinner, causing the alveoli to develop tension and collapse.
- As a result, the alveoli push out the air during expiration.
Q8: What is the Law of Laplace?
A8:
- The Law of Laplace (P = 2T/r) states that smaller alveoli have a higher tendency to collapse.
- In this equation, P represents the collapsing pressure of the alveoli, T represents surface tension, and r represents the alveolar radius.
Q9: What is the significance of alveolar pores (pores of Kohn)?
A9:
- Alveolar pores (pores of Kohn) are connections between adjacent alveoli.
- They allow for the flow of excessive air from hyperventilated alveoli to hypoventilated alveoli, preventing the collapsing of the alveoli.
- This helps maintain proper ventilation and prevents ventilation-perfusion mismatch.
Q10: How does an increase in surface tension affect gas exchange in the respiratory membrane?
A10:
- An increase in surface tension can lead to the collapse of alveoli, creating a vacuum-like effect.
- This can pull water from pulmonary capillaries into the alveoli, causing the respiratory membrane to become thicker and resulting in a decrease in gas exchange.
Q1: What is surfactant?
A1:
- Surfactant is a complex mixture of lipids and proteins that is secreted by type II alveolar cells.
- It reduces alveolar surface tension and prevents the collapse of the alveoli.
Q2: What is the purpose of surfactant?
A2:
- decrease surface tension by reducing the cohesiveness of water molecules in the alveoli.
- This is achieved by pulling the water molecules upward, allowing the alveoli to expand and decreasing the collapsing pressure of the alveoli.
Q3: What is the role of the phosphatidylcholine group and dipalmitoyl group in surfactant structure?
A3:
- The phosphatidylcholine group in surfactant is hydrophilic and binds to water molecules.
- The dipalmitoyl group, which is hydrophobic, does not want to be in the water.
- It pulls the surfactant molecule upwards along with the water molecules attached to the phosphatidylcholine group, thereby reducing surface tension and allowing the water layer to expand.
Q4: How does surfactant spread in the alveoli?
A4:
- Surfactant is distributed between water molecules in the alveoli, causing breaks in certain points of the water layer.
- When the alveolar radius increases, the distribution of surfactant becomes less dense, resulting in a slight increase in surface tension and a bit of collapsing of the alveoli.
- When the alveolar radius decreases, the distribution of surfactant becomes condensed and concentrated, leading to a decrease in surface tension.
- This allows the alveoli to expand and reduces the collapsing pressure.
Q5: What is the pharmacological name for surfactant?
A5:
amphiphilic phospholipid.
- It is used to treat respiratory distress syndrome.
Q6: What is respiratory distress syndrome of the newborn?
A6:
- Respiratory distress syndrome of the newborn occurs when developing fetal lungs are unable to synthesize surfactant until late in the 36th week of pregnancy.
- Premature babies may not have enough pulmonary surfactant, leading to high surface tension in the lungs.
- At birth, babies make strenuous inspiratory efforts to overcome the high surface tension and inflate the lungs, which can cause physical damage to the lung cells.
Q7: What are the opposing forces acting on the lungs?
A7:
include the elasticity of the lung tissue, surface tension, compliance, and airway resistance.
Q1: What are the major inspiratory muscles?
A1: The major inspiratory muscles are the diaphragm and the external intercostal muscles.
Q2: Which muscles are considered accessory muscles of inspiration?
A2: The accessory muscles of inspiration, used during forceful inspiration, include the
- sternocleidomastoid, scalenus, and pectoral muscles.
Q3: Which muscles are involved in active expiration?
A3:
Active expiration involves the contraction of the abdominal muscles and the internal intercostal muscles.
Q4: What is tidal volume (TV)?
A4: Tidal volume refers to the volume of air that enters and leaves the lungs with each normal breath during quiet respiration.
Q5: What is inspiratory reserve volume (IRV)?
A5: Inspiratory reserve volume is the additional volume of air that can be forcibly inhaled after a normal tidal volume inhalation.
Q6: What is expiratory reserve volume (ERV)?
A6: Expiratory reserve volume is the volume of air that can be forcibly exhaled after exhalation of a normal tidal volume.
Q7: What is residual volume (RV)?
A7: Residual volume is the volume of air that remains in the lungs after maximal exhalation. It cannot be measured by spirometry.
Q8: What is vital capacity (VC)?
A8: Vital capacity is the total volume of air that can be inhaled and exhaled forcefully, including tidal volume, inspiratory reserve volume, and expiratory reserve volume.
Q9: What is functional residual capacity (FRC)?
A9: is the volume of air that remains in the lungs without forceful expiration, including expiratory reserve volume and residual volume.
Q10: What is total lung capacity (TLC)?
A10: is the total volume of air that the lungs can hold, including vital capacity and residual volume. It cannot be measured by spirometry.
Q1: What is the purpose of a pulmonary function test?
A1:
- Is used to determine if a person has an obstructive or restrictive pulmonary disorder.
- It is performed using a spirometer.
Q2: What are examples of obstructive pulmonary disorders?
A2:
emphysema, chronic bronchitis, and asthma. These conditions are characterized by a decreased percentage of pulmonary function test (<80%) and a decreased forced expiratory volume (FEV).
Q3: What are examples of restrictive pulmonary disorders?
A3:
tuberculosis, interstitial lung diseases, and pulmonary fibrosis.
These conditions are characterized by an increased percentage of pulmonary function test (>80%) and a decreased forced vital capacity (FVC).
Q4: Is tuberculosis (TB) considered a restrictive or obstructive disorder?
A4:
- Tuberculosis (TB) is typically considered a restrictive lung disorder rather than an obstructive one.
- While TB can cause narrowing of the airways and obstructive symptoms in some cases, it primarily leads to scarring and inflammation in the lungs, resulting in reduced lung volume and restrictive lung disease.
Q5: What is the FEV1/FVC ratio?
A5: T
* is the proportion of air that can be exhaled in the first second (FEV1) compared to the total volume of air that can be exhaled (FVC).
- A normal pulmonary function typically has an FEV1/FVC ratio of around 80%.
- In obstructive disorders, such as emphysema and asthma, the FEV1 is significantly lower than the FVC, resulting in a decreased FEV1/FVC ratio.
- In restrictive disorders, such as tuberculosis and pulmonary fibrosis, the FVC is decreased, leading to an increased FEV1/FVC ratio.
Q1: What is the primary determinant of airway resistance?
A1:
- The radius of the conducting airway is the primary determinant of airway resistance.
- As the radius decreases, airway resistance increases, and vice versa.
Q2: What is the effect of parasympathetic stimulation on the airways?
A2:
leads to bronchoconstriction, causing a decrease in the diameter of the airways and an increase in airway resistance.
Q3: What is the effect of sympathetic stimulation on the airways?
A3:
Sympathetic stimulation leads to bronchodilation, causing an increase in the diameter of the airways and a decrease in airway resistance.
Q4: What happens in asthma or allergic reactions in terms of airway function?
A4:
- In asthma or allergic reactions, there is an excessive bronchoconstriction response, leading to a significant decrease in the diameter of the airways.
- This limits the amount of air that can flow in and out of the lungs, resulting in labored breathing.