Medical-Surgical Nursing
Respiratory System
Primary functions
a. provides oxygen for metabolism in the tissues
b. removes carbon dioxide, the waste product of metabolism
2 Main Parts
1. Upper Repiratory Tract
a. Nose
b. Mouth
c. Pharynx
d. Larynx
2. Lower Respiratory Tract
a. Trachea
b. Bronchus
c. Bronchioles
d. Lungs
NOSE
1. Filters, warms and humidifies air
2. First defense against foreign particles
3. Inhalation for deep breathing is to be done via nose
4. Exhalation is done through the mouth
5. Serves as passageway for incoming and outgoing air, filtering, warming, moistening, and chemically examining it.
6. Organ of smell (Olfactory receptors located in the nasal mucosa
7. Aids in phonation
PHARYNX
1. Serves as a passageway and entrance to the respiratory and digestive tracts
2. Aids in Phonation
3. Tonsils function to destroy incoming bacteria and detoxify certain foreign proteins
LARYNX
1. Voice production: during expiration, air passing through the larynx cause the vocal cords to vibrate; short, tense cords
2. Serves as a passageway for air and as the entrance to the lower respiratory tract
TRACHEA”windpipe”
1. tube about 4 inches long
, 2. begins just under the larynx (voice box) and runs down behind the breastbone (sternum).
3. divides into two smaller tubes called bronchi: one bronchus for each lung.
4. composed of about 20 rings of tough cartilage
5. widens and lengthens slightly with each breath in, returning to its resting size with each breath out
BRONCHUS
1. a passage of airway in the respiratory tract that conducts air into the lungs
2. branches into smaller tubes, which in turn become bronchioles
3. No gas exchange takes place in this part of the lungs
BRONCHIOLES
1. first passageways by which the air passes through the nose or mouth to the air sacs of the lungs in which branches no longer
contain cartilage or glands in their submucosa
2. they are branches of the bronchi. The bronchioles terminate by entering the circular sacs called alveoli
LUNGS
1. a pair of spongy, air-filled organs located on either side of the chest (thorax).
2. covered by a thin tissue layer called the pleura. The same
3. A thin layer of fluid acts as a lubricant allowing the lungs to slip smoothly as they expand and contract with each breath.
Diagnostic Tests
1. Spirometry
2. Arterial blood gas determination
3. Oximeters
4. Exercise tolerance
5. Radiography
6. Bronchoscopy
7. Culture, sensitivity tests
General Manifestations of Respiratory Disease
1. Sneezing
2. Coughing
– Irritation
– Controlled by medulla
– Constant, dry unproductive vs. productive cough
3. Sputum
– Mucus discharge
– Yellowish-green
– Rusty, dark-colored
– Thick, sticky
– Hemoptysis
Manifestations
1. Breathing patterns and characteristics
– Kussmaul respiration
– Labored respiration, prolonged inspiration/expiration times
– Wheezing
– Stridors
2. Breath sounds
– Rales
– Rhonchi
– Absence
Abnormal patterns of breathing
1.Sleep Apnea
cessation of airflow for more than 10 seconds more than 10 times a night during sleep
causes: obstructive (e.g. obesity with upper narrowing, enlarged tonsils, pharyngeal soft tissue changes inacromegaly or hypothyroidism)
2. Cheyne-Stokes- periods of apnoea alternating with periods of hyperpnoae
causes:
left ventricular failure
brain damage (e.g. trauma, cerebral, haemorrhage)
high altitude
3. Kussmaul's (air hunger)
deep rapid respiration due to stimulation of respiratory centre
4. Hyperventilation
Respiratory System
Primary functions
a. provides oxygen for metabolism in the tissues
b. removes carbon dioxide, the waste product of metabolism
2 Main Parts
1. Upper Repiratory Tract
a. Nose
b. Mouth
c. Pharynx
d. Larynx
2. Lower Respiratory Tract
a. Trachea
b. Bronchus
c. Bronchioles
d. Lungs
NOSE
1. Filters, warms and humidifies air
2. First defense against foreign particles
3. Inhalation for deep breathing is to be done via nose
4. Exhalation is done through the mouth
5. Serves as passageway for incoming and outgoing air, filtering, warming, moistening, and chemically examining it.
6. Organ of smell (Olfactory receptors located in the nasal mucosa
7. Aids in phonation
PHARYNX
1. Serves as a passageway and entrance to the respiratory and digestive tracts
2. Aids in Phonation
3. Tonsils function to destroy incoming bacteria and detoxify certain foreign proteins
LARYNX
1. Voice production: during expiration, air passing through the larynx cause the vocal cords to vibrate; short, tense cords
2. Serves as a passageway for air and as the entrance to the lower respiratory tract
TRACHEA”windpipe”
1. tube about 4 inches long
, 2. begins just under the larynx (voice box) and runs down behind the breastbone (sternum).
3. divides into two smaller tubes called bronchi: one bronchus for each lung.
4. composed of about 20 rings of tough cartilage
5. widens and lengthens slightly with each breath in, returning to its resting size with each breath out
BRONCHUS
1. a passage of airway in the respiratory tract that conducts air into the lungs
2. branches into smaller tubes, which in turn become bronchioles
3. No gas exchange takes place in this part of the lungs
BRONCHIOLES
1. first passageways by which the air passes through the nose or mouth to the air sacs of the lungs in which branches no longer
contain cartilage or glands in their submucosa
2. they are branches of the bronchi. The bronchioles terminate by entering the circular sacs called alveoli
LUNGS
1. a pair of spongy, air-filled organs located on either side of the chest (thorax).
2. covered by a thin tissue layer called the pleura. The same
3. A thin layer of fluid acts as a lubricant allowing the lungs to slip smoothly as they expand and contract with each breath.
Diagnostic Tests
1. Spirometry
2. Arterial blood gas determination
3. Oximeters
4. Exercise tolerance
5. Radiography
6. Bronchoscopy
7. Culture, sensitivity tests
General Manifestations of Respiratory Disease
1. Sneezing
2. Coughing
– Irritation
– Controlled by medulla
– Constant, dry unproductive vs. productive cough
3. Sputum
– Mucus discharge
– Yellowish-green
– Rusty, dark-colored
– Thick, sticky
– Hemoptysis
Manifestations
1. Breathing patterns and characteristics
– Kussmaul respiration
– Labored respiration, prolonged inspiration/expiration times
– Wheezing
– Stridors
2. Breath sounds
– Rales
– Rhonchi
– Absence
Abnormal patterns of breathing
1.Sleep Apnea
cessation of airflow for more than 10 seconds more than 10 times a night during sleep
causes: obstructive (e.g. obesity with upper narrowing, enlarged tonsils, pharyngeal soft tissue changes inacromegaly or hypothyroidism)
2. Cheyne-Stokes- periods of apnoea alternating with periods of hyperpnoae
causes:
left ventricular failure
brain damage (e.g. trauma, cerebral, haemorrhage)
high altitude
3. Kussmaul's (air hunger)
deep rapid respiration due to stimulation of respiratory centre
4. Hyperventilation
