Respiratory System Flashcards
What is the respiratory system?
The set of organs that allows a person to breathe and/or exchange oxygen and carbon dioxide throughout the body
What are the two primary tasks of the respiratory system?
External respiration: exchanging air between the body and the outside environment
Internal respiration: bringing oxygen to the cells and removing carbon dioxide
What are the other functions of the respiratory system?
Filter inspired air
Help produce sound
Aid in smell
Rids the body of some excess water and heat
Helps regulate blood pH
What are the two phases of breathing?
Inhalation (breathing in) and exhalation (breathing out)
What is the pharynx?
Common pathway for food and air
Resonating chamber for speech
What are the three divisions of the pharynx?
Nasopharynx, oropharynx, and laryngopharynx
Which divisions of the larynx have tonsils?
Nasopharynx and oropharynx
What is the larynx?
The voice box, ends in the trachea
Prevents swallowed materials from entering lower respiratory tract
Produces sound
supported by 9 pieces of cartilage
What is the trachea?
Windpipe
Cartilage rings keep it open and rigid
Bifurcates into two bronchi
What are the two lungs separated by?
Mediastinum (it also contains the heart)
Which lung has two lobes?
Left
Which lung has 3 lobes?
Right
What is the fissure that separates the 2 lobes of the left lung?
Oblique fissure
What fissures separate the 3 loves of the right lung?
Oblique and horizontal
Which lung is the smaller one and why?
Left, because the cardiac notch accommodates the heart
Which lung is more superior?
Right, because the liver is on the right side
Which lobe of each lung is the largest?
Superior
What is the moist tissue that lines both the lung and the cavity?
Pleura
What pleura lines the lung?
visceral pleura
What pleura lines the cavity?
Parietal pleura
What is the pleural cavity?
The potential space between the pleura layers
What is the main function of the pleura?
Produce fluid that acts as a lubricant, ensuring minimal friction during breathing
What are all of the branches of the lungs from largest to smallest?
Main bronchi, secondary bronchi, bronchioles, alveoli
What happens to the rib cage and diaphragm during inhalation?
Diaphragm contracts and rib cage rises up
Atmospheric pressure fills the lungs
Where does gas exchange between air and blood occur in the lungs?
Alveoli
Capillaries covering each one
Why is it important that alveoli and capillaries are close together?
So oxygen and carbon dioxide can move between them
What happens with gas exchange when you breathe?
When you breathe in, oxygen will travel across the walls of the alveoli into the blood stream
Carbon dioxide will cross from the blood in the capillaries into the air in the alveoli and then breathed out
Is exhaling passive?
Yes
What is external respiration?
The breathing we are familiar with
What is internal respiration?
The gas exchange that occurs
What are some disorders of the respiratory system?
Asthma, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), lung cancer, cystic fibrosis, pneumonia, and pleural effusion
What is asthma?
Spasms in the bronchi causing difficulty breathing
Usually resulting from allergies or other hypersensitivity
Airways become swollen and muscles tighten
What is COPD an umbrella term for?
Emphysema, chronic bronchitis, and refractory asthma
What is COPD characterized by?
Breathlessness
What is emphysema?
Damage to the alveoli, body does not get enough oxygen
Hard to catch breathe, chronic cough
What is bronchitis?
Inflammation of bronchial tubes
Cough that brings up mucous
Shortness or breathe, wheezing, chest tightness
What is cystic fibrosis?
Hereditary disease that affects the lungs and digestive system
Thick and sticky mucous clog the lungs and obstruct the pancreas
What is pneumonia?
Infection that inflames the alveoli
May fill with pus
Cause cough with phlegm, fever, chills, and difficulty breathing
What is pleural effusion?
Build-up of excess fluid between the layers of the pleura outside the lungs
Water on the lungs
Can the eustachian tube becoming swollen from a cold or upper respiratory infection cause problems with the middle ear?
Yes
What can an infection that spreads from the nose and throat through the eustachian tube cause?
Middle ear infection
Can allergies cause pressure build up and a conductive hearing loss?
Yes
What are some important risk factors for hearing loss for newborn babies?
Prolonged artificial ventilation, presence of severe hypoxic ischemic encephalopathy or persistent pulmonary hypertension
What are the best predictors for hearing loss of perinatal origin?
Medicated total length in NICU and length of artificial ventilation
What is ECMO?
Artificial lung outside of the body
Used for someone who is awaiting a heart or lung transplant
What is hyperbaric oxygen therapy?
Breathing chamber of pure oxygen
Can help reduce the severity of hearing loss and tinnitus
