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Respiratory efficiency is the effectiveness of the respiratory system in delivering oxygen to the blood and oxygenating it. It is worth finding out what determines the respiratory efficiency, how we can improve it and what diagnostic tests are performed to assess it.

Respiratory fitnessis the ability of the respiratory system to oxygenate the blood, it depends primarily, but not only, on the condition of the lungs. In medicine, this term is most often used in the context of its absence - respiratory failure is a serious life-threatening condition requiring immediate treatment.

Diagnostics of the respiratory system and its efficiency is based not only on laboratory blood tests, but also on imaging and functional tests, e.g. spirometry.

It is worth taking care of your respiratory fitness, because it directly affects the efficiency of the whole body, the basic actions that can be taken to this end are quitting smoking and exercising regularly.

Respiratory fitness: what does it depend on?

Respiratory fitnessis a term that describes the body's ability to oxygenate the blood. It is mainly influenced by three factors:

  • the so-called lung capacity, i.e. the amount of air they can hold
  • blood flow through the pulmonary vessels which determines the ability of the blood to receive oxygen
  • oxygen diffusion capacity, i.e. how the alveolar cells work, how quickly they transport oxygen to the blood

They depend primarily on the condition of the respiratory system, which is influenced by various states, e.g.

  • respiratory diseases that reduce lung compliance, i.e. the lungs' ability to fill with air, e.g. chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, emphysema, atelectasis, pneumonia
  • respiratory diseases that impair gas exchange, oxygen penetration into the blood through the thickening of the alveolar-capillary barrier, e.g. pulmonary edema
  • pathological conditions of the airways, e.g. obstruction (choking), laryngeal edema, or airway spasm (e.g. in an asthma attack). They significantly reduce or even prevent the transport of air to the lungs

Other factors influencing respiratory efficiency, not directly related to the respiratory system, are, for example :

  • changes in the pulmonary vessels, e.g. embolismpulmonary
  • conditions reducing the ability to expand the chest, e.g. severe obesity, deformities, injuries
  • composition of the breathing mixture, if there is too little oxygen in the air, the body does not receive enough oxygen and it leads to respiratory failure
  • impairment of the functioning of the respiratory muscles or the respiratory center, which significantly reduces the frequency and depth of breathing: damage to the brainstem or the upper part of the spinal cord, overdose of certain drugs, myasthenia gravis, or electrolyte disturbance
  • heart diseases, especially heart failure or shock, in which the impaired flow through the lungs causes a reduction in blood oxygenation
  • physical activity, trained people have a greater lung capacity, and therefore respiratory efficiency

Respiratory failure

Respiratory failure is a condition in which gas exchange in the lungs is disturbed, some of the diseases that may lead to it have been mentioned earlier (shock or choking).

It leads to the occurrence of hypoxemia, i.e. lowering the partial pressure of oxygen in the arterial blood below<60 mmHg, a niekiedy także do hiperkapnii - wzrostu ciśnienia parcjalnego dwutlenku węgla ≥45 mmHg.

Depending on the dynamics of the progression of symptoms, we talk about acute or chronic respiratory failure.

Acute develops suddenly and is potentially reversible, leading to it e.g.

  • pulmonary edema (caused by heart failure or e.g. drowning)
  • alveolar bleeding
  • severe pneumonia
  • trauma
  • odma
  • shock

Acute respiratory distress syndrome is also called ARDS (acute respiratory distress syndrome), the term not only refers to the current condition, but also describes the pathological process in the lungs, in which, through damage to the vessels and cells of the lungs, the accumulation of fluid in the alveoli, which impairs gas exchange, leading to hypoxemia.

Chronic respiratory failure develops gradually and is not fully reversible. It occurs as a result of, for example, chronic lung diseases: chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, pneumoconiosis, cystic fibrosis, diseases of the nervous system and muscles.

Respiratory failure is manifested by shortness of breath, cyanosis, increased heart rate, exercise intolerance, less often cough or chest pain. It should be remembered that the symptoms of the disease leading to this condition predominate.

How to increase respiratory fitness?

The most important action that can be taken to this end is to quit smoking, tobacco smoke severely damages the respiratory tract and alveoli leading from oneside to overproduce mucus, which impedes the flow of air in the lungs, and on the other hand impairs the cells lining the alveoli, which reduces the ability of gas exchange.

The next methods result from the previously described factors influencing the respiratory efficiency.

In order to maintain maximum respiratory efficiency, respiratory diseases, especially chronic obstructive pulmonary disease and asthma, should be controlled and treated, this will slow or even stop the disease progression, and thus maintain the current respiratory fitness.

Another action that can be taken to improve the condition of the respiratory system is so-called aerobic or dynamic exercise. These are, for example, running, swimming, cycling, i.e. sports in which the breathing accelerates and deepens, as opposed to static sports (e.g. weightlifting), where the effort is often made without breathing.

Regularly practiced sport increases lung capacity, so a larger area is aerated and gas exchange takes place over a larger area. As a result, more oxygen reaches the blood and respiratory efficiency increases.

Physical effort also positively affects the work of the heart and circulatory system, as well as the work of the respiratory muscles, which additionally improves respiratory efficiency.

In addition, it is important to control your body weight, as excess body fat makes it difficult for the respiratory muscles to work, and also reduces the volume of the chest and lungs.

Interestingly, respiratory efficiency is also increased by inhalation drugs used, for example, in asthma, they cause the expansion of the airways, thanks to which more air and oxygen reaches the blood and more is delivered to all cells of the body.

Respiratory fitness assessment

We currently have several tools to assess respiratory efficiency, these are laboratory and functional tests, including:

  • pulse oximetry assessing the oxygen content in the blood
  • gasometry, it is a laboratory test that assesses the content of oxygen, carbon dioxide in the blood and other parameters not only related to the respiratory system

Both of these tests are used primarily in emergencies, while in the more advanced diagnostics of the respiratory system, the following are also performed:

  • spirometry, which is a test that assesses the work of the respiratory system on the basis of air flow measurements performed during inhalation and exhalation, as well as diastolic and provocative spirometry performed after the administration of drugs. They define the response of the respiratory system to various situations, e.g. actionallergens
  • plethysmography - similar to spirometry but measuring total lung capacity
  • 6-minute walk test to assess overall body fitness
  • pulmonary transfer test for carbon monoxide (TLCO), which assesses the permeation of gases from the alveoli into the blood, and thus the aforementioned diffusion capacity
  • Chest X-ray for diagnosis, e.g. pneumonia
  • chest tomography
Probe

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Respiratory system