Lung compliance

Examples of Lung compliance in the following topics:

• Factors Affecting Pulmonary Ventilation: Compliance of the Lungs

  • Lung compliance refers to the magnitude of change in lung volume as a result of the change in pulmonary pressure.
  • Compliance depends on the elasticity and surface tension of the lungs.
  • Compliance is inversely related to the elastic recoil of the lungs, so thickening of lung tissue will decrease lung compliance.
  • A low lung compliance means that the lungs are "stiff" and have a higher than normal level of elastic recoil.
  • A high lung compliance means that the lungs are too pliable and have a lower than normal level of elastic recoil.

• The Work of Breathing

  • Breathing includes several components, including flow-resistive and elastic work; surfactant production; and lung resistance and compliance.
  • Two main causes of decreased gas exchange are compliance (how elastic the lung is) and resistance (how much obstruction exists in the airways).
  • In both diseases, the airways are less compliant and stiff or fibrotic, resulting in a decrease in compliance because the lung tissue cannot bend and move.
  • The overall compliance of the lungs is increased, because as the alveolar walls are damaged, lung elastic recoil decreases due to a loss of elastic fibers; more air is trapped in the lungs at the end of exhalation.
  • Explain the roles played by surfactant, flow-resistive and elastic work, and lung resistance and compliance in breathing

• Lung Cancer

  • Lung cancer is a disease characterized by uncontrolled cell growth in tissues of the lung.
  • Lung cancer is a disease characterized by uncontrolled cell growth in tissues of the lung.
  • Most cancers that start in lung, known as primary lung cancers, are carcinomas that derive from epithelial cells.
  • The main types of lung cancer are small cell lung carcinoma (SCLC), also called oat cell cancer, and non-small cell lung carcinoma (NSCLC).
  • Accounting for 25% of lung cancers, squamous cell lung carcinoma usually starts near a central bronchus.

• Lungs

  • The lungs are cone-shaped, and the apex refers to the top of the lung, while the base refers to the bottom of the lung, and is curved inward to allow it to rest on the diaphragm.
  • The right lung is larger than the left lung, and the left lung contains the cardiac notch, a concave impression that the heart lies against.
  • The lungs are divided into lobes by fissures on the outer surface of the lung, and divide further into segments and haxagonal lobules, which are the smallest divisions of the lungs.
  • The elastic recoil of the lungs automatically pulls the lungs inward during exhalation.
  • The major function of the lungs is gas exchange, which occurs in the alveoli of the lung.

• Lobes, Fissures, and Lobules

  • There are three lobes in the right lung and two in the left lung.
  • The right lung is divided into three lobes.
  • It is a small tongue-like projection of the left lung that is analogous to the middle lobe of the right lung.
  • There is a hilium for each of the lungs found in the mediastinum (backside) of the lungs, and it is thinner in the left lung compared to the right lung because it lies between the cardiac notch and the groove for the aorta.
  • The right lung has three lobes and the left lung has two.

• Lung Volumes and Capacities

  • Lung volumes measure the amount of air for a specific function, while lung capacities are the sum of two or more volumes.
  • Air in the lungs is measured in terms of lung volumes and lung capacities .
  • The lungs are never completely empty; there is always some air left in the lungs after a maximal exhalation.
  • If this residual volume did not exist and the lungs emptied completely, the lung tissues would stick together.
  • The total lung capacity (TLC) is a measurement of the total amount of air that the lung can hold.

• Blood Flow in the Lungs

  • Pulmonary circulation in the lungs is responsible for removing carbon dioxide from and replacing oxygen in deoxygenated blood.
  • From the right ventricle of the heart, blood is pumped through the pulmonary semilunar valve into the left and right pulmonary arteries (one for each lung) and travels through the lungs.
  • Air is inhaled through the nose or the mouth and fills the lungs.
  • The alveoli are the site of oxygen and carbon dioxide exchange in the lungs.
  • Outline the path of pulmonary circulation: blood flow in the lungs

• Compliance

  • Compliance affects everyday behavior, especially in social interactions.
  • In studying compliance, social psychologists aim to examine overt and subtle social influences and their relationship to compliance.
  • Individuals can be coaxed into compliance in a number of ways, which we will discuss next.
  • Number: Compliance increases as the number of people in a group increases.
  • Low-balling gains compliance by offering the subject something at a low initial cost.

• The Mechanics of Human Breathing

  • During this process, the chest wall expands out and away from the lungs.
  • The lungs are elastic; therefore, when air fills the lungs, the elastic recoil within the tissues of the lung exerts pressure back toward the interior of the lungs.
  • Upon exhalation, the lungs recoil to force the air out of the lungs.
  • Each lung is surrounded by an invaginated sac.
  • A tissue layer called pleura surrounds the lung and interior of the thoracic cavity.

• Lung Capacity and Volume

  • Lung volumes and capacities refer to phases of the respiratory cycle; lung volumes are directly measured while capacities are inferred.
  • There are certain types of diseases of the lung where residual volume builds up because the person cannot fully empty the lungs.
  • Lung volumes and lung capacities refer to the volume of air associated with different phases of the respiratory cycle.
  • Lung volumes are directly measured.
  • Lung capacities are inferred from lung volumes.