Respiration, Respiratory System and Its Disorders

Oxygen is essential to support life. We breathe in air in order to take oxygen and breathe out to expel the waste gas which is carbon dioxide, a by-product of respiration. Breathing enables air containing oxygen to be taken into the lungs so that the oxygen can be transferred to the blood and circulated throughout the body. This action of breathing and the exchange of oxygen and carbon dioxide inside the lungs and within the cells throughout the body is commonly described as Respiration.

Respiratory system:

The organs, tissues and structures that enable us to breathe, together form the Respiratory system. The system comprises the mouth, nose, windpipe which is the Trachea,lungs and pulmonary blood vessels.  When we breathe, air is drawn through the nose and mouth into the airway and the lungs. In the lungs, oxygen is taken from air sacs,alveoli, into tiny blood vessels, pulmonary capillaries. At the same time, carbon dioxide is released from the capillaries into the alveoli and expelled as we breathe out.

The process of breathing:

The breathing process consists of breathing in, inspiration, breathing out which is expiration and a pause. Breathing is controlled by the brain through the autonomous nervous system, a system that also helps to monitor the levels of oxygen and carbon dioxide in the blood. The average adult normally breathes about 16 times per minute. Children breathe about 20 to 30 times per minute. The rate can be altered, usually increased by the respiratory center in the brain as a response to abnormal levels of oxygen or carbon dioxide, stress, exercise, injury or illness. The body can also change the depth and the rate of breathing voluntarily. There is always some air left in the lungs so that oxygen is constantly available to the blood.

What can go wrong?

Respiration can be impaired in various ways by obstruction of the airway for example as in choking or drowning, by preventing normal exchange of gases in the lungs such as in fume or smoke inhalation, or by conditions affecting the function of the lungs for instance as with a collapsed lung, or the mechanism of breathing as in Asthma.

Disorders affecting the respiratory process always require urgent first aid and may be life-threatening or potentially fatal since they may lead to suffocation, a condition caused not only by smothering but also by any condition that stops oxygen being taken up from the lungs by the blood. The depletion of oxygen in the blood is known as hypoxia. In that state the tissues begin to deteriorate rapidly, brain cells will start to die if the oxygen supply is interrupted for as little as three minutes.

Chronic disease of the lungs such as emphysema which affects the alveoli can cause shortness of breath and eventually respiratory failure. Allergic reactions may be confined to the respiratory tract as in hay fever when inflamed nasal membranes lead to congestion, sneezing and watery eyes. Infections cause inflammation of the windpipes, bronchi, which is bronchitis and lung tissue which is pneumonia causing coughing and phlegm production. Infections and other conditions can affect the two layers of pleural membrane which is called pleurisy making breathing painful.

Other conditions that lead to breathing difficulties include hyperventilation, pneumothorax, asthma and anaphylactic shock.

Symptoms of low blood oxygen:

Rapid distressed breathing and gasping for breath. 

Confusion and aggression leading to unconsciousness. 

Usually, Grey-blue skin which is called cyanosis. 

Breathing or heart may stop if hypoxia is not swiftly reversed. 

First-aid priorities:

Recognise respiratory distress.

Identify and remove the cause of the problem and provide fresh air.

Restore and maintain the casualty's breathing and if necessary apply the ABC of resuscitation, and be prepared to resuscitate if necessary. 

Obtain appropriate Medical aid. Any casualty who has experienced severe difficulties with the airway or breathing must be shifted to the hospital, even if first aid seems to have been successful.