Respiratory system Flashcards
What are the primary functions of the respiratory system?
Exchanging respiratory gases between the blood and external environment AND
it works with the cardiovascular system
What are the three major parts of the respiratory system?
Airway
Lungs
Muscles of the Respiratory System (diaphragm, rib muscles & abdominals)
List all the organs of the respiratory system?
Nasal cavity
Pharynx
Larynx
Trachea
Bronchi/Bronchioles
Lungs
Nasty Penguins Lick Toes Before Lunch
Why does the air enter through the nasal cavity?
To help the air be warmed, filtered, and moistened
What divides the nasal cavity into two? *remember the nasal cavity is lined with ciliated mucosa (not relevant for this question tho)
The nasal septum
What does ciliated mucosa do?
The mucus traps dust, mold, and other contaminants AND the
movement of cilia pushes foreign particles towards the pharynx where they can be swallowed
List the three sections of the pharynx?
nasopharynx
oropharynx
laryngopharynx
What structure diverts air away from the esophagus?
The epiglottis
What is/ function of the epiglottis?
The epiglottis is an flexible flap of cartilage at the superior end of the larynx. The epiglottis bends downward to cover the opening of the airway, allowing food and liquids to enter the esophagus
What is/ what does the larynx contain?
The larynx is the voicebox (also could be called the adam’s apple). It has the vocal cords. TBH YOU COULD PROB PUT A 5 ON THIS CARD, pretty ez
How do the vocal cords create sound?
The vocal cords vibrate with expelled air to form sounds
What is the pathway of air flow after entering the nose/mouth?
The air goes through the pharynx/throat
THEN the larynx/voicebox
THEN the air moves onto the trachea because the epiglottis is OPEN,
THEN the trachea divides into 2 primary bronchi; left and right bronchi that enters the lungs
THEN the air goes to the alveoli which resides inside the terminal bronchi
just review me once or maybe twice, anatomy of the trachea
it is 10-12 cm long
Supported by C-shaped rings of cartilage
What does the bronchi divide further into? once again, I’m not sure this is SUPER important but that’s just my opinion
Each bronchus divides into smaller and smaller branches that carry air throughout the lungs
Why do the lungs not take up the entire thoracic cavity?
these paired organs fill the thoracic cavity except for the mediastinum, which contains the heart.
How many lobes (sections) are the left and right lung divided into?
Left: 2 lobes
Right: 3 lobes
The left one only has 2 lobes because the left lung needs to be smaller to accommodate space for the heart
Where is the apex of the lungs located
top
What are terminal bronchioles?
Bronchial branches less than 0.5mm in diameter/ smaller bronchioles ig
Where does gas exchange occur?
In the aveoli. The Gas exchange occurs by simple diffusion through the respiratory membrane which is surrounded by a bunch of alveolar and capillary walls.
What is pulmonary ventilation?
Air moving into and out of the lungs; breathing
What is external respiration?
Exchanging gases between aveoli and blood, you may be confused why this is consider “external”. It is because technically the alveoli gets their air from the external environment, where as internal respiration occurs on an cellular/ tissue level of gas exchange, needing no external environment assistance
What is the respiratory gas transport/ what allows for the transportation of O2 and CO2?
The bloodstream carries both O2 and CO2
What is internal respiration?
Exchanging gases between blood and tissue cells
During inspiration, what occurs to the thoracic cavity and its muscles?
Inspiratory muscles contract
(Diaphragm & External intercostals), meaning the external intercostals go forward and out, while the diaphragm goes down leading to a increase in thoracic cavity size and more gas but less pressure in the cavity.
During expiration, what occurs to the thoracic cavity and its muscles
Inspiratory muscles relax
(Diaphragm & External intercostals), meaning the external intercostals go back inward, while the diaphragm goes up leading to a decrease in thoracic cavity size and less gas but there is more pressure in the cavity.
What is respiratory capacity? and what can affect it?
How much air moves into and out of the lungs under different conditions
Affected by:
Size
Age
Gender
Physical Condition
What is tidal volume?
The amount of air that moves into and out of the lungs during normal quiet breathing. it is approximately 500 mL.
What is inspiratory reserve volume?
The amount of air that can be inhaled forcibly after a normal inhalation
What is expiratory reserve volume?
The amount of air that can be forcibly exhaled after a normal exhalation
What is residual volume?
The amount of air that remains in the lungs even after a forceful exhalation which keeps alveoli inflated
What is vital capacity and how can you measure it?
The total amount of air that can be exchanged
TV + IRV + ERV
Respiratory capacities are measured with a spirometer
What two breathing sounds can be heared with an stethoscope?
Bronchial sounds: rushing air sound in the trachea & bronchi
Vesicular breathing sounds: soft, muffled sounds in the thorax
What does O2 attach itself to?
Hemoglobin in the red blood cells
What control centers in determine the rate & depth of respiration
The medulla and pons
Here are some factors that influence respiration
Physical: talking, exercising
Conscious: holding breath, singing
Emotional: fear, laughter
Chemical: most important
What is asthma?
A chronic lung disease that causes inflammation and constriction of the airways
What is acute bronchitis?
Inflammation of the bronchial tubes usually caused by a virus
which leads to a nagging cough and chest congestion. the inflamed brochial can lead to reduced space in the brochial.
What is chronic bronchitis? (type of COPD)
A long-term and recurring form of bronchitis lasting more than 3 months
What is emphysema?
A lung condition characterized by loss of elasticity in alveoli. when the air sacs are damaged in emphysema, it’s hard to move air out of your lungs. This doesn’t leave room for fresh, oxygen-rich air to enter your lungs. Elastin keeps airways open and prevents airways from collapsing but this loss of elastin leads to the collapse of airways during expiration. This causes air to be trapped in the lungs and leads to barrel chest
What is cystic fibrosis?
A progressive, inherited disease that causes malfunction in cells that produce mucus and certain other body fluids. Leading to persistent lung infections as well as other problems throughout the body. Thick and sticky mucus prevents cilia from moving the mucus. The mucus begins to block airways and trap germs that cause infections.
What is pneumonia?
Lung infection caused by bacteria, virus or fungus which causes alveoli to fill with fluid or pus, making it difficult to breathe
What is tuberculosis?
Contagious infection of the lungs caused by bacteria. Infection destroys lung tissue causing to people to cough up blood
What is lung cancer?
Tumor forms in your lungs, could be from smoking
What does vaping do?
Vaping causes thickening of alveoli and inflammation
Heres some info on infant, doubt we’ll need it
Fetal lungs are filled with fluid
Lungs are not fully inflated until about 2 weeks after birth
Average respiration rate is 40-80 per minute
Why do babies born before 37 weeks commonly develop infant respiratory distress syndrome?
Due to a lack of surfactant. Surfactant is a substance produced in the lungs that prevents alveoli from collapsing
What are the effects of aging to the respiratory system?
Chest wall becomes more rigid as we age
Lungs lose elasticity
By age 70, vital capacity decreases by about one-third
