Gas Exchange Essay

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Gas exchange is defined as the process by which oxygen is transported to cells and carbon dioxide is transported from cells (Giddens page 161). Gas exchange in the human body occurs in the lungs and as the primary function of the respiratory system it exchanges two gases, oxygen and carbon dioxide. The process of gas exchange happens as we breath through ventilation, transport and perfusion. As you inhale oxygen, the oxygen travels deep into the lungs until it reaches the alveoli. Here in the alveoli oxygen and carbon dioxide diffuse across the alveolar-capillary membrane. Oxygen is able to enter into the blood while carbon dioxide is leaving the blood as waste to be exhaled from the lungs and out of the body. This oxygenated blood is then …show more content…

A reduction or lack of oxygen and/or buildup of waste leads to demise. For this reason, gas exchange is critical. Gas exchange is compromised when there is impairment of ventilation, altered transport of oxygen, or inadequate perfusion. Impaired ventilation may occur in conditions such as inadequate muscle or nerve function to move air into the lungs, such as cervical spinal cord injury; narrowed airways from bronchoconstriction like in asthma, or from obstruction like in chronic bronchitis; poor gas diffusion in the alveoli, such as pulmonary edema, acute respiratory distress syndrome or pneumonia. Altered transport of oxygen occurs when sufficient red blood cell are not available to carry oxygen, like in anemia. Inadequate perfusion develops when cardiac output is reduced, like in myocardial infarction (Giddens page 164). Asthma, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), pneumonia, aspiration, respiratory syncytial virus (RSV), bronchiolitis, croup, tracheal esophageal fistula are the exemplars of gas …show more content…

Emphysema is an enlargement of the alveoli and bronchioles, and destroys the alveolar walls. Symptoms of emphysema can include the use of accessory muscles while breathing and wheezing upon exhalation, thin appearance with weight loss, barrel chest and favoring the tripod position. Chronic bronchitis is an inflammation of the bronchial tubes causing wheezing and chronic production of excess mucus, producing a cough and making it difficult to breath leading to cyanosis. Also the human body can appear normal or overweight. There may be an enlargement of the heart or cor pulmonale (right sided heart failure). Both emphysema and chronic bronchitis contribute to the destruction of the lung tissue and obstruction of the airway, which causes and impaired gas

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