Physiology Flashcards
What are the functions of the respiratory system?
Gas exchange
Regulation of acid/base balance
Immune surveillance and Host defence
Asthma and COPD are an example of what kind of abnormal gas exchange?
Airway disorders
Emphysema is an example of what type of abnormal gas exchange?
Alveolar disorder
Asbestosis is and example of what type of respiratory disorder?
Fibrotic lung disease
What does nasal breathing do?
Filters air
Warms air
Humidifies air
How is Humidification in nasal breathing achieved?
Mucous galnds
Seromucous glands
Goblet cells
How is heating achieved in Nasal Breathing?
The use of a rich capillary network.
Three examples of disorders caused by abnormal mucosal defence?
Pneumonia
Lung abscesses
Bronchiectasis
What causes respiratory acidosis and alkalosis?
Acidosis - inadequate clearance of CO2
Alkalosis Hyperventilation leading to too little CO2
What is type 1 respiratory failure and Type 2?
Type 1 - Low PaO2 and normal or low PaCO2
Type 2 - Low PaO2 and high PaCO2
Where does type 2 respiratory failure normally occur?
COPD
Neuromuscular Disease
Primary and secondary abnormalities of ventilation control.
What is the equation for pressure?
N/unit area (m2)
What is the partial pressure of a gas?
The individual pressure that one gas exerts.
What does Daltons law state?
That the total pressure is equivalent to the sum of the partial pressures.
At equilibrium the partial pressure of a gas in solution is what to it in it’s gaseous state?
Equal.
What is henry’s law?
[gas] = partial pressure x solubility coefficient.
What are the normal values for the PaO2 and % Hb saturation of arterial blood and of mixed (venous) blood?
Arterial: 13.3 kPa, 97-98%
Venous: 5.3 kPa, 75%
IN what two forms is oxygen transported around the body?
dissolved in blood plasma
bound to Hb
Why is Haemoglobin so important?
Increases oxygen carriage capacity.
The body needs around 250ml/min of Oxygen, the [O] in the blood is only 3ml, if only dissolved Oxygen was present then this quota could not be reached.
How does oxygen get delivered to tissues?
Through diffusion, there is a massive diffusion gradient into mitochondria (their Po2 is only 0.1 kPa compared to arterial blood’s 13.3 kPa.
What is the structure of Haemoglobin?
Consists of 4 subunits, each subunit consists of a glob in chain (peptide) and a haem group.
1g of Hb binds how many ml’s of O2?
1.36
if 1g of Hb binds 1.36ml’s of O2, what is the O2 content (ml/l) of a person with an [Hb] of 15g/100ml?
204ml/l
What does anaemia result from?
A lack of Hb in the blood caused by:
Impaired production
Increased breakdown
Blood loss
Fluid Overflow - haemodilution.