Respirtatory System Flashcards
Nasal cavity
-Warms incoming air
-Lined with hairs to trap dust
Epiglottis
-Flap of cartilage
-Covers the trachea when swallowing to stop the food going down the wrong way
Voice box (larynx)
-Contains vocal chords
-Connects the back of the nasal cavity to the trachea
Trachea
-Which is the windpipe
-Runs parallel to the oesophagus
C shaped cartilage rings
-Support the trachea
-Keep the airway open
Bronchi
-Trachea branches of into 2 bronchi
-Each bronchi leads to the lungs
-Each bronchi increasingly gets narrower into tubes called bronchioles
Alveoli
-At the end of bronchioles are alveoli
-Provide a big surface area for gas exchange
Plural membranes
-Plural membranes surround the lungs
-The thin fluid filled space in between so called the pleural cavity
-The pleural membranes are slippery to protect the lungs and allows them to move inside the ribs
Intercostal muscles
-Between the ribs and help to form and move the chest wall
Diaphragm
-Dome shaped muscular structure
-Separates the chest and the abdominal cavities
Inhalation
-Intercostal muscles contract and the rib cage moves upwards and out
-Diaphragm contracts and flattens
-Pleural membranes pull the lungs open
-The space in the rib cage increases
-Air is forced into the lungs
Exhalation
-Diaphram relaxes
-Intercostal muscles pull the rib cage inwards
-Space inside the rib cage decrease
-Air squeezes out of the lungs
Gaseous exchange
-Exchange of oxygen and carbon dioxide between the capillaries and the alveoli
-Thin walls allows for the exchange
-The alveoli are coated with water to allow for the oxygen to dissolve
Biochemical process
-Occurs in the cytoplasm and the mitochondria
-Requires oxygen
-Involves breaking down glucose to provide ATP
-ATP is a high energy molecule
Anaerobic respiration
-During exercise pelvic acid is converted into lactic acid
Inhalers
-Preventer inhaler- Used daily and contain steroids which helps to reduce the inflammation of the airways
-Reliever inhaler- taken when asthma symptoms happen and contain short acting beta agonists
Asthma
-Factor that can cause include- triggers, exposure, genetics and being born prematurely
-Happens when the bronchi inflame which causes the airways to narrow
-Symptoms- breathlessness, tight chest, episodes of breathlessness and asthma attacks
-Treatment- inhalers
Emphysema
-Causes- smoking, exposure and genetics
-Explanation- the airways become inflamed and narrow
-Alveoli damage
-Symptoms- shortness of breath, wheezing, phlegm and cough
-Treatment- anti inflammatory drugs to help open the airways
Cystic fibrosis
-Cause- both parents must have a faulty gene
-Explanation- makes sticky mucus instead of runny
-Symptoms- Lung issues, digestive issues like diarrhoea and bowel obstructions
-Treatment- antibiotics, vibration vest and pancreatic enzymes
