Respiratory System Part 1 - Nasal, Oral, Pharynx Flashcards
what is our respiratory system responsible for?
bringing atmospheric oxygen to our tissues and removing byproducts of respiration (carbon dioxide)
what two components can we divide the respiratory system into?
upper and lower respiratory system
what does the upper respiratory system consist of?
- the nasal cavity
- pharynx (throat)
- the oral cavity
- upper larynx (above vocal folds
what does the lower respiratory system consist of?
- lower larynx
- trachea
- bronchi
- bronchioles
- lungs
what are the two areas of the body for inhaled air?
- nasal cavity
- oral cavity
the nasal cavity is divided in half, by what?
- the nasal septum
the part of the nose that projects off of the face is made of?
cartilage
what are the nasal concha?
three bones on each side of the nasal cavity
what are the three nasal cochas?
- superior nasal concha
- middle nasal concha
- inferior nasal concha
what are the the superior and middle nasal concha made of?
ethmoid bone
what is the inferior nasal concha made of?
it is its own bone
what does the nasal conchae do?
create spaces in the nasal cavity
what is between/beneath each of the conchae?
a little groove/space
- called nasal meatuses
what is the benefit of the nasal meatuses?
having a nasal conchae with a nasal meatus underneath will increase the surface area in the nasal cavity
what is having a higher surface area/wall space of the nasal important?
because there is a mucous membrane covering all long the walls, having an increased surface area means that there is a better chance of a foreign particle or the cold air hitting a wall so that it can heat and humidify the air or trap the foreign particle
what is the respiratory system covered in?
a mucous membrane
what does the mucous membrane of the respiratory system do?
- helps to trap foreign particles
- help to humidify/moisten and warm the incoming air
how can we control where something goes in our system?
by trapping it in mucous
your body is more equipped to deal with foreign things in the _________ than the ____________.
- digestive system
- small spaces of your lungs when oxygen and carbon dioxide are in constant movement
why do we want to moisten and warm incoming air?
because once we get into the throat/pharynx, the cells in the wall cannot handle the cold, dry, incoming air very well. it will aggravate and cause pain
what is tucked into the nasal meatuses of the nasal concha?
olfactory receptors ( found in some other places as well but mainly there )
what do olfactory receptors do in the nasal meatuses?
essentially smell particles
what are olfactory receptors connected to?
cranial nerve one (olfactory nerve) which then takes the scent to the brain to tell you what you are smelling
where does air go once it is breathed in?
swirls around in the nasal cavity and the goes posteriorly towards the pharynx/throat
why might air get looped around in the nasal cavity a few times before going to the pharnyx?
because of the nasal conchae
- this is GOOD so that we make sure we trap the foreign particles in the mucous membrane
what are the three parts of the pharynx?
- nasopharynx
- oropharynx
- laryngopharynx
where is the nasopharynx?
posterior to the nasal cavity
where is the oropharynx
posterior to the oral cavity
where is the laryngopharynx?
posterior to the larynx
where is the oral cavity with in relation to the nasal cavity?
inferiorly
what takes up most of the oral cavity?
the tongue
what divides the nasal and oral cavity?
the palate
what are the two components of the palate?
- the hard palate (anterior)
- soft palate (posterior)
what is the hard palate made up of?
two bones
- maxilla
- palatine bones
what is the soft palate made up of?
- smooth muscle
what is the division of the laryngophara\ynx as you go inferiorly?
- anteriorly: larynx/voice box going down towards the lungs
- posteriorly: esophagus and into the digestive system
where is sound produced?
the larynx
what is the larynx?
a muscular tube with smooth muscles in the walls
- shared space between the respiratory system and the digestive system
when do we decide if whatever came into our mouth and nose is going to go towards the lungs or down towards the stomach and digestive system?
in the laryngopharynx
where is the auditory tube/eustachian tube?
in the nasopharynx
what does the auditory tube connect?
the nasal pharynx to the middle ear
what is the job of the auditory tube?
help equalize air pressure across the eardrum
what is the eardrum?
a thin membrane within the ear
what do we do if we need to equalize air pressure on either side of the eardrum?
we open the auditory tube
- it will open on its own but we are able to speed up the process by moving the structures around it
what system are tonsils apart of?
the lymphatic system
what does the tonsils do?
help protect the body from infections
- check incoming items to make sure there are not any foreign particles
there are several sets of tonsils. what are they?
- pharyngeal tonsils
- palatine tonsils
- lingual tonsils
why do some people get inflammation from infections on the palatine tonsils and get them removed?
- because they are so prone to infection and swelling of them
- they are located in a place where incoming food and bacteria are very likely to hit it
where does the soft palate drop?
at the bottom of the oral cavity, very posteriorly
what is the uvula?
the back of the soft palate in the back of the throat
when we are sick, we can see swelling on either side of the uvula. what is it?
the palatine tonsils
why do the palatine tonsils swell?
because they are working hard to fight the infection
when we swallow, what happens so that food does not go up into our noses?
the soft palate will lift to help cover the opening to the nasopharynx
what is the area at the back of the soft palate (uvula) a separation/division of?
- nasopharynx above
- oropharynx below
what divides the oropharynx and laryngopharanx?
the epiglottis
what is the epiglottis?
a piece of cartilage that is part of the larynx
what does the epiglottis do when we swallow?
goes down to cover the opening of the larynx so that we don’t choke. this way the food goes into the epiglottis and the digestive system
what are paranasal sinuses?
openings within the skull/bones and located in bones that they are named after
what are the four paranasal sinuses?
- frontal
- ethmoidal
- sphenoidal
- maxillary
why do we have open spaces within the bones called paranasal sinuses?
- they all connect directly to the nasal cavity to
what are the paranasal sinuses covered in?
mucous membrane
- so they help with the humidifying, moistening and warming of inhaled air along with the nasal cavity
what does having holes in the bones of the skull for the paranasal sinuses do?
decreases the weight of the skull which is beneficial for the bones in the cervical vertebral column because they are small and the skull and brain are heavy
what are the paranasal sinuses for?
- help to maintain intracranial pressure along with the nasal cavity
- it gives an open space where extra air can go when there is a pressure change in the external environment
when is the only time we notice our paranasal sinuses doing anything?
when we are sick
- this is because they are covering in mucous membrane so when you get an infection, the body automatically produces more mucous
why does the body produce more mucous when we are sick?
because the body is thinking that we should trap the foreign invaders and get them out
- this is why our nose gets really stuffy and the sinuses feel stuffed and clogged and we get headaches right in the frontal and ethmoidal sinus area
why do we get headaches in the frontal and ethmoidal sinus area when we are sick?
because there is so much mucous when you are sick that all of the areas have an increased pressure
