structure of the airway

Question 1

what is the difference between the conducting and respiratory portions of the airway?

Answer 1

the conducting portion does not involve any gas exchange

Question 2

where does the conducting portion start and end?

Answer 2

from the nasal cavity/mouth to the bronchioles

Question 3

what happens to air as it passes through the conducting respiratory tract?

Answer 3

it is warmed, filtered and humidified

Question 4

what are the nares? (sing. Naris)

Answer 4

the inlet to the nose (the nostrils)

Question 5

why are the nares lined with hair? (vibrissae)

Answer 5

to trap invading foreign bodies

Question 6

what type of epithelium is the conducting portion of the airway lined with?

Answer 6

pseudo stratified, ciliated, columnar cells which are interspersed with goblet cells to produce mucus

Question 7

what is the purpose of the cilia in the airway?

Answer 7

they beat to move mucus up out of the lungs to be swallowed.

Question 8

what are the conchae and what is their purpose?

Answer 8

these are folds of the nasal mucosa which hang down and have areas called meatus behind the. the main purpose of these is to increase surface area for the air to be warmed. The middle meatus provides an opening for sinuses to drain into.

Question 9

what are the hard and soft palate and what are their purpose?

Answer 9

the hard palate is composed of bone, the soft palate is composed of cartilage. bot separate the nasal cavity fro the oropharynx below it.

Question 10

what is the nasolacrimal duct?

Answer 10

a duct that drains tears from the eyes into the inferior meatus in the nasal cavity.

Question 11

what is the kiesselbach area in the nasal cavity?

Answer 11

an area rich in anatomising arteries

Question 12

what is the pharynx divided into?

Answer 12

the nasopharynx (behind the nasal cavity); the oropharynx (behind the tongue) and the laryngopharynx (area where the pharynx divides into oesophagus and trachea)

Question 13

what type of cells are the nasopharynx and oropharynx lined with?

Answer 13

stratified squamous epithelia

Question 14

what is the larynx?

Answer 14

the cartilage located just below the laryngopharynx. Involved in voice production (often called the ‘voice box’) composed of 9 different cartilage structures.

Question 15

what is the hyoid bone?

Answer 15

the hyoid bone is the only bone of the larynx, located at the top. It is a horse shoe shape open at the back.

Question 16

what is the thyroid cartilage?

Answer 16

the largest cartilage of the larynx, two medial planes fuse to form the laryngeal prominence (‘adam’s apple’)

Question 17

what is the cricoid cartilage?

Answer 17

a signet ring shaped piece of cartilage, inferior to the thyroid cartilage. the front is narrower and called the arch, the posterior part is called the lamina.

Question 18

what is the median cricothyroid ligament?

Answer 18

the ligament that attaches the cricoid and thyroid cartilages and is also the site for emergency access to the airway.

Question 19

what are the arytenoids?

Answer 19

horn shaped small cartilage structures which sit on either side of the cricoid cartilage. these cartilages are articled with the cricoid cartilage an can rotate, slide towards and away from each other and tilt anteriorly and posteriorly. These movements are important in approximating, tensing and relaxing the vocal cords.

Question 20

what are corniculate?

Answer 20

horn shaped cartilages located on top of the arytenoids.

Question 21

why are the arytenoids and corniculates indented?

Answer 21

to provide an attachment for muscles.

Question 22

what is the epiglottis?

Answer 22

a flap of elastic cartilage covered in mucous membrane. It is attached at one end to the thyro-epiglottic ligament.

Question 23

what is the quadrangular membrane?

Answer 23

a thin, sub-mucosal sheet of connective tissue that joins the epiglottic cartilage to the lateral aspects of the arytenoids.

Question 24

what is the vestibular fold?

Answer 24

the fold formed from the vestibular ligament (from the quadrangular membrane) which lies superiorly to the vocal fold. often called the false vocal cords.

Question 25

what is the ary-epiglottic fold?

Answer 25

where the epiglottis joins to the quadrangular membrane.

Question 26

what is the vocal fold?

Answer 26

the upper edge of the cricovoal/cricothyroid membrane

Question 27

what is the laryngeal inlet and how is it closed?

Answer 27

the art-epiglottic folds form the laryngeal inlet which is a protective sphincter. It is closed by the elevation of the larynx during swallowing.

Question 28

what is the laryngeal ventricle?

Answer 28

the area between the vestibular and vocal folds. there is also a saccule which has mucosal glands to help lubricate the vocal folds.

Question 29

what is the rima glottidis?

Answer 29

the opening of the vocal folds which is widened or narrowed by the surrounding muscles. This is important in raising the intra-abdominal pressure required for micturition, defecation and lifting heavy objects.