Pulmonary Circulation I & II

Question 1

What are the two arterial bloos supplies to the lung?

Answer 1

1) Bronchial circulation
2) Pulmonary circulation

Question 2

T or F?

Pulmonary emboli are common, yet pulmonary infarction is not.

Explain your answer

Answer 2

True.

Pulmonary infarction isn’t common due to the collateral blood supply via the bronchial circulation.

Question 3

Conditions such as cystic fibrosis or bronchiectasis commonly result in severe persistent hemoptysis. What causes this hemoptysis?

Answer 3

Since these conditions result in chronic inflammation, the bronchial arteries enlarge to provide increased blood flow. This can then lead to hemoptysis, which then leads to rapid bleeding into the lungs (since it’s arterial pressure pushing blood in). As a result, asphyxiation or exsanguinaton can occur (asphyxiation usually causes death before exsanguination).

Question 4

T or F?

The source of most bleeding in the lung (hemoptysis) is the pulmonary circulation.

Answer 4

False

It’s the bronchial circulation (due to the arterial enlargement of bronchial arteries that accompanies chronic inflammation in the lung).

Question 5

On the arterial side of pulmonary circulation, what are the 3 general types of vessels?

Answer 5

1) Large elastic pulmonary arteries
2) Muscular pulmonary arteries
3) Pulmonary arterioles

Question 6

Which type of vessel on the arterial side of pulmonary circulation is responsible for regulation of blood flow in response to hypoxia and other blood stimuli?

Answer 6

The muscular pulmonary arteries

Question 7

Which type of vessel supply the alveolar ducts and alveoli?

Answer 7

The pulmonary arterioles.

Question 8

T or f?

The systemic vessels are 7x more compliant than pulmonary vessels.

Answer 8

False

Pulmonary vessels are more compliant.

This enables them to have to LOW RESISTANCE, HIGH VOLUME vascular bed that’s ideal for gas exchange.