Surface forces in respiratory bronchioles during a first breath-model experiment and some theoretical considerations.
In a physical sense the terminal bronchioles are capillaries, and the air-liquid interface descending through them during the first breath will therefore have a spherical curvature with a radius identical to that of the airway. Air will reach the alveolus if the liquid-coated bronchiolar wall proximal to the air-liquid interface can withstand the pressure gradient required to push the interface towards the periphery. Otherwise, there is a risk that the bronchioles become overexpanded while the alveoli remain non-aerated.
D001980:Bronchi / Q000098:blood supply / Q000502:physiology*; D002196:Capillaries / Q000502:physiology; D006801:Humans; D007231:Infant, Newborn; D008954:Models, Biological; D011312:Pressure; D011663:Pulmonary Surfactants; D012119:Respiration
D011663:Pulmonary Surfactants