医学专业英语Chapter5RespiratorySystem.docVIP

Chapter 5 Respiratory System In this passage you will learn: ● The organs of the respiratory system ● The structure and function of these organs ● The mechanism of breathing ● The gas transport and cleaning system All living animals must take in oxygen and get rid of carbon dioxide. In the vertebrates—— animals with backbones —— that get their oxygen from the air, both tasks are performed by special gas-exchange organs called lungs. The lungs provide a place where oxygen can reach the blood and carbon dioxide can be removed from it. They are equipped with tubes and a bellows system for drawing in air from the outside, while the pulmonary veins and arteries circulate blood through from inside. The lungs also have a cleaning system that traps, ejects, or destroys irritants and other harmful substances that travel in with the air. In the simpler cold-blooded amphibians and reptiles, the lungs are two balloon-like sacs. In active animals that require large amounts of oxygen, especially the warm-blooded birds and mammals , the lungs are a spongy labyrinth of sacs that supply an enormous surface area for the transfer of gases. In the adult human the total lung surface, if flattened out, would be larger than a badminton court, about 100 square yards (83 square meters). Air enters the body through the nose and passes through the nasal cavity, which is lined with a mucous membrane and fine hairs (cilia) to help filter out foreign bodies, as well as to warm and moisten the air. Paranasal sinuses are hollow, air-containing spaces within the skull that communicate with the nasal cavity. They, too, have a mucous membrane lining and function to provide the lubricating fluid mucus. as well as to lighten the bones of the skull and help produce sound. After passing through the nasal cavity, the air next reaches the pharynx (throat). There are three divisions of the pharynx. The nasopharynx is the first division, and it is nearest to the nasal