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Anatomy and Function of the Respiratory System
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What is respiration? |
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Respiration is the act of breathing: |
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- Inhaling (inspiration) - taking in oxygen.
- Exhaling (expiration) - giving off carbon dioxide.
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What makes up the respiratory system? |
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The respiratory system is made up of the organs involved in the interchanges of gases and consists of the: |
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- Nose.
- Pharynx.
- Larynx.
- Trachea.
- Bronchi.
- Lungs.
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The upper respiratory tract includes the following: |
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- Nose.
- Nasal cavity.
- Sinuses.
- Ethmoid.
- Frontal.
- Maxillary.
- Sphenoid.
- Larynx.
- Trachea.
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The lower respiratory tract includes the following: |
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- Lungs.
- Airways (bronchi and bronchioles).
- Air sacs (alveoli).
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What is the function of the lungs? |
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The lungs take in oxygen, which cells need to live and carry out their normal functions. The lungs also get rid of carbon dioxide, a waste product of the body's cells.
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The lungs are a pair of cone-shaped organs made up of spongy, pinkish-gray tissue. They take up most of the space in the chest or the thorax (the part of the body between the base of the neck and diaphragm).
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The lungs are enveloped in a membrane called the pleura.
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The lungs are separated from each other by the mediastinum, an area that contains the following: |
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- Heart and its large vessels.
- Trachea (windpipe).
- Esophagus.
- Thymus.
- Lymph nodes.
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The right lung has three sections, called lobes. The left lung has two lobes. When you breathe, the air: |
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- Enters the body through the nose or the mouth.
- Travels down the throat through the larynx (voice box) and trachea (windpipe).
- Goes into the lungs through tubes called main-stem bronchi.
- One main-stem bronchus leads to the right lung and one to the left lung.
- In the lungs, the main-stem bronchi divide into smaller bronchi and then into even smaller tubes called bronchioles.
- Bronchioles end in tiny air sacs called alveoli.
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