Respiratory System: Breathing Mechanics
Overview
Lung ventilation, or the process of breathing, involves intricate mechanisms that ensure our bodies receive oxygen and expel carbon dioxide. Our lungs constantly work to bring oxygen to our cells by inhaling and to rid the body of carbon dioxide waste through exhaling.
Learning Objectives
By the end of this chapter, students will be able to:
- explain the mechanics involved during ventilation, both the inhalation and exhalation, and which muscles are involved during each.
- describe how changes in pressure drive ventilation.
Video Review
Watch the video: Anatomy and Physiology: Respiratory System: Breathing Mechanics (v2.0) (4 minutes)
Activities
Question Sets
The Process of Breathing
Ventilation Control Centers
Chapter Attributions
This chapter by Elisabeth Kehrli and Anil Kapoor is licensed under a CC BY 4.0 license.
Media Attributions
Anatomy and Physiology: Respiratory System: Breathing Mechanics (v2.0) by DrBruce Forciea is licensed under the Standard YouTube license.
Interactive Activity Attributions
The interactive activities in this chapter are from Interactive Activities for Human Anatomy and Physiology by Open Education Lab, Ontario Tech University, and are licensed under a CC BY NC SA 4.0 license.