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The major function of the lungs is gas exchange between the lungs and the blood. [67] The alveolar and pulmonary capillary gases equilibrate across the thin blood–air barrier . [ 34 ] [ 68 ] [ 69 ] This thin membrane (about 0.5 –2 μm thick) is folded into about 300 million alveoli, providing an extremely large surface area (estimates ...
The lungs are the largest organs in the lower respiratory tract. The lungs are suspended within the pleural cavity of the thorax. The pleurae are two thin membranes, one cell layer thick, which surround the lungs. The inner (visceral pleura) covers the lungs and the outer (parietal pleura) lines the inner surface of the chest wall. This ...
Both the lungs and the skin serve as respiratory organs in amphibians. The ventilation of the lungs in amphibians relies on positive pressure ventilation. Muscles lower the floor of the oral cavity, enlarging it and drawing in air through the nostrils into the oral cavity. With the nostrils and mouth closed, the floor of the oral cavity is then ...
The lungs are not capable of inflating themselves, and will expand only when there is an increase in the volume of the thoracic cavity. [6] [7] In humans, as in the other mammals, this is achieved primarily through the contraction of the diaphragm, but also by the contraction of the intercostal muscles which pull the rib cage upwards and outwards as shown in the diagrams on the right. [8]
Lung volumes and lung capacities are measures of the volume of air in the lungs at different phases of the respiratory cycle. The average total lung capacity of an adult human male is about 6 litres of air. [1] Tidal breathing is normal, resting breathing; the tidal volume is the volume of air that is inhaled or exhaled in only a single such ...
Spirometry the determination of maximum airflow at a given lung volume as measured by breathing into a dedicated machine; this is the key test to diagnose airflow obstruction. Pulmonary function testing including spirometry, as above, plus response to bronchodilators, lung volumes, and diffusion capacity, the latter being a measure of lung ...
Insufficient surfactant in the lungs of preterm infants causes infant respiratory distress syndrome (IRDS). The lecithin–sphingomyelin ratio is a measure of fetal amniotic fluid to indicate lung maturity or immaturity. [28] A low ratio indicates a risk factor for IRDS. Lecithin and sphingomyelin are two of the glycolipids of pulmonary surfactant.
In the lungs the blood is oxygenated and returned to the left atrium to complete the circuit. [ 1 ] The other division of the circulatory system is the systemic circulation that begins with receiving the oxygenated blood from the pulmonary circulation into the left atrium.