Respiratory physiology Flashcards
What is internal respiration?
the intracellular mechanisms which consumes oxygen and produces carbon dioxide
what is external respiration?
sequence of events that leads to the exchange of oxygen and carbon dioxide between the environment and the cells of the body
what are the four steps of external respiration?
Ventilation
The mechanical process of moving gas in and out of the lungs
Gas exchange between alveoli and blood
The exchange of O2 and CO2 between the air in the alveoli and the blood in the pulmonary capillaries
Gas transport in the blood
The binding and transport of of O2 and CO2 in the circulating blood
Gas exchange at the tissue level
The exchange of O2 and CO2 between the blood in the systemic capillaries and the body cells
What is boyles law? and how does this effect ventilation?
At any constant temperature the pressure exerted by a gas varies inversely with the volume of the gas
(as the volume of a gas increases the pressure exerted by the gas decreases)
-air flows down a pressure gradient from a region of high pressure to a region of low pressure
-intra-alveolar pressure must become less than atmospheric pressure for air to flow into lungs
What are the two forces that hold the thoracic wall and lungs in close opposition?
- intrapleural fluid cohesiveness: water molecules in intrapleural fluid are attracted to each other sticking pleural membrane together
- negative intrapleural pressure: the sub-atmospheric intrapleural pressure creates a transmural pressure gradient
What respiratory muscles are at work during inspiration?
Is it an active or passive process?
Does intraalveolar pressure increase or decrease?
ACTIVE
-diaphragm: contracts and descends (increasing vertical dimension of thoracic cavity)
-external intercostal muscles: contracts and elevates ribs (increases side to side dimension of thoracic cavity and causes sternum to move upward and outward which increases front to back dimension of thoracic cavity)
intraalveolar pressure decreases to less than atmospheric
What respiratory muscles are at work during expiration?
is it an active or passive process?
Does intraalveolar pressure increase or decrease?
PASSIVE
-diaphragm and external intercostal muscles relax
-chest wall and stretched lungs recoil
intraalveolar air pressure increases to more than atmospheric pressure
What causes the lungs to recoil during expiration?
- elastic connective tissue
- alveolar surface tension
- alveolar interdependence
What reduces alveolar surface tension? what is this consisted of and how is it secreted?
-surfactant
complex mixture of lipids secreted by type II alveoli
it intersperses between water molecules lining alveoli
What is LaPace’s law and what does this mean for the effect of surfactant on smaller alveoli?
P = 2T/R
P = inward directed collapsing pressure
T = Surface Tension
r = radius of the buble
According to the law of LaPlace: the smaller alveoli (with smaller radius - r) have a higher tendency to collapse
Surfactant lowers the surface tension of smaller alveoli more than that of large alveoli
This prevent the smaller alveoli from collapsing and emptying their air contents into the larger alveoli
What is alveolar interdependence?
If an alveolus start to collapse the surrounding alveoli are
stretched and then recoil exerting expanding forces in the
collapsing alveolus to open it
What are the major muscles of respiration?
- contract every inspiration
- diaphragm and external intercostal muscles
What are the muscles of active expiration?
- contract only during active expiration
- internal intercostal muscles
- abdominal muscles
What are the accessory muscles of inspiration?
- sternocleidomastoid
- scalenus
What is the: Tidal volume inspiratory reserve volume inspiratory capacity expiratory reserve volume residual volume Functional residual capacity Vital capacity
- Tidal volume: Volume of air entering or leaving lungs during a single breath = 500ml
- Inspiratory reserve volume: Extra volume of air that can be maximally inspired over and above the typical resting tidal volume = 3000ml
- Inspiratory capacity = TV + IRV
- Expiratory reserve volume: Extra volume of air that can be actively expired by maximal contraction beyond the normal volume of air after a resting tidal volume = 1000ml
- Residual volume: min. volume of air remaining in the lungs even after a maximal expiration = 1200ml
- Functional residual capacity: volume of air in lungs at the end of normal passive expiration = RV+ERV = 2200ml
- Vital capacity: maximal volume of air that can be moved out during a single breath following a maximal inspiration = IRV +TV + ERV = 4500ml
What is the total lung capacity?
-the maximum volume of air that the lungs can hold
-vital capacity + residual volume
=5700
Does residual volume increase or decrease when the elastic recoil of the lungs is lost? What condition can this happen in?
it increases
-e.g. in emphysema
What is FVC in spirometry?
Forced Vital Capacity
maximum volume that can be forcibly expelled from the lungs following a maximum inspiration
What is FEV1?
Forced expiratory volume in 1 second
-the volume of air that can be expired during the first second of expiration in an FVC determination
What is the normal FEV1/FVC ratio?
How does this change in an obstructive lung disease picture?
How does this change in a restrictive lung disease picture?
How does this change in a mixed obstructive and restrictive lung disease picture?
Normal = >70% Obstructive = <70% (FVC stays the same but FEV1 is reduced) Restrictive = >70% (both FVC and FEV1 are reduced) Mixed = <70% (both FVC and FEV1 are reduced but FEV1 is still proportionally MORE reduced due to obstruction)
What is the formula for air flow?
Normally does air move in and out with a small or large pressure gradient? Why is this?
What is the primary determinant of airway resistance?
Is expiration or inspiration more difficult when there is significant resistance to airflow?
F = change in P/R
F = flow P = pressure R = resistance
Air usually flows in and out of the lungs with a small pressure gradient due to resistance of flow in the airways being very low.
Primary determinant of airway resistance is the radius of the conducting airway
Expiration is more difficult than inspiration
What affect does sympathetic vs parasympathetic stimulation cause in the airways of the lungs?
Parasympathetic simulation = bronchoconstriction
Sympathetic stimulation = bronchodilation
Does the intrapleural pressure rise or fall during inspiration? Does it rise or fall during expiration?
Intrapleural pressure falls during inspiration
Intrapleural pressure rises during expiration
What is dynamic airway compression? is this a problem in normal people? how come? Is this a problem for patients with airway obstruction? How come?
- during expiration the chest wall recoils, this creates a rise in intrapleural pressure
- during active expiration this causes the alveoli AND the airway to become compressed
-in normal people the increased airway resistance causes an increase in airway pressure upstream, this helps to open the airways by increasing the driving pressure between the alveolus and the airway i.e. increasing the airway pressure downstream
-in those with airway obstruction, during active expiration, the driving pressure between the alveolus and the airway is lost over the obstructed segment = fall in airway pressure along the airway downstream. But the intrapleural pressure remains high and therefore these airways are more likely to collapse.
(this problem becomes worse if the patient also has decreased elastic recoil of the lungs)
What is pulmonary compliance? How does the work required to produce a given degree of inflation change if the lungs are less compliant?
compliance is the measure of effort that has to go into stretching/distending the lungs
- volume change per unit of pressure change across the lung
- the less compliant the lungs are, the more work is required to produce a given degree of inflation as a greater change in pressure is needed to produce a given change in volume (stiffer lungs)
List 5 things that could reduce pulmonary compliance?
- pulmonary fibrosis
- pulmonary oedema
- lung collapse
- pneumonia
- absence of surfactant
What pattern is seen on spirometry of people with reduced pulmonary compliance? What clinical feature would be described?
- restrictive pattern of lung volumes
- shortness of breath esp. on exertion
How could pulmonary compliance increase? what does this cause in the lungs?
- if elastic recoil of the lungs is lost
- e.g. emphysema
- patients have to work harder to get air out of the lungs = hyperinflation of lungs
- compliane increases with increasing age
What are the four situations where work of breathing is increased?
-When pulmonary compliance is increased
-When airway resistance is increased
-When elastic recoil is decreased
-when there is a need for increased ventilation
(Breathing usually requires about 3% of total energy expenditure)
What is anatomical dead space? how much is this usually in mls?
some inspired air remains in the airway where it is not available for gas exchange
150mls
What does pulmonary ventilation mean? How do you work out pulmonary ventilation in litres per minute?
Pulmonary ventilation is the volume of air breathed in and out per minute
Tidal volume X respiratory rate
What does alveolar ventilation mean? How do you work out alveolar ventilation? is it less or more than pulmonary ventilation
The volume of air exchanged between the atmosphere and the alveoli per minute
This is less than pulmonary ventilation because of anatomical dead space
Alveolar ventilation = (tidal volume - dead space volume) X respiratory rate