Spirometers

Question 1

how many ways are there to measure breathing

Answer 1

4

Question 2

Vital capacity

Answer 2

The maximum volume of air that can be breathed in or out in one breath

Question 3

Tidal volume

Answer 3

The volume of air breathed in and out at rest

Question 4

Breathing rate

Answer 4

this is the number of breaths taken in one minute

Question 5

Oxygen uptake

Answer 5

this is the volume of oxygen used up by someone in a given time

Question 6

How do we measure breathing?

Answer 6

a spirometer

Question 7

What absorbs the waste CO2

Answer 7

soda-lime

Question 8

Why does the CO2 need to be absorbed?

Answer 8

to stop the concentration of carbon dioxide in the re-breathed air from getting too high, as this can cause respiratory distress

Question 9

What happens as the subject breathes through the spirometer

Answer 9

a trace is drawn on a rotating drum of paper or a graph is formed digitally, which can be viewed on a computer

Question 10

what can be calculated from the spirometer trace?

Answer 10

vital capacity, tidal volume and breathing rate

Question 11

how is oxygen uptake measured from the spirometer?

Answer 11

Carbon dioxide is removed from the exhaled air, meaning that the total volume of air available in the spirometer gradually decreases, as oxygen is extracted from it by the subject’s breathing. This change in volume is used as a measure of oxygen uptake

Question 12

residual volume

Answer 12

The volume of air left in lungs after maximum expiration.