Pneumonia

Our lungs play a crucial role in the oxygenation of our body’s tissues. As the centerpiece of the respiratory system, lungs function to deliver oxygen to our tissues as well as release carbon dioxide into the atmosphere. With such a prominent role in the body, it is important to understand how the lungs function as well as how the lungs are impacted by a respiratory disease such as pneumonia. Watch the video below to learn about lung function, anatomy, and the impacts of pneumonia.

Self-Assessment Questions:

Click here to test your understanding of Pneumonia.

Discussion Questions:

1. Most people know that smoking is not good for your lungs. But exactly why is that the case? Identify three to five ways that smoking can affect either breathing, gas exchange, or lung tissue, and explain how this happens. Use this study by Tantisuwat et al. to help answer this question.
2. Non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs are often used in the treatment of pneumonia, but may not always be the best way to treat lung infections associated with the disease. Based on the video’s description of pneumonia’s physiological basis and this article by Voiriot et al., explain some advantages and disadvantages of this treatment method using physiological arguments.
3. Pulmonary fibrosis is like pneumonia in that both are restrictive lung diseases that initially present with similar symptoms. Using the video and this NIH resource overviewing idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis, compare and contrast the two disorders. Which is more easily treated? Which is more severe? Why?
4. Babies with respiratory distress syndrome (RDS) do not have sufficient surfactant to keep their alveoli open by lower surface tension in the alveoli (learn more about surfactant here). What kind of problems and symptoms might this cause in a premature baby? Given the way that surfactant helps with breathing, what would be some chemical characteristics of surfactant? Use this resource on RDS to help you answer this question.

Continue Reading:

• A. Tantisuwat and P. Thaveeratitham, “Effects of smoking on chest expansion, lung function, and respiratory muscle strength of youths,” J. Phys. Ther. Sci., vol. 26, no. 2, pp. 167–170, 2014. Read this resource here.
  • This study describes the effects of smoking on lung function in young men. These compromises in lung function can prove detrimental to the body’s ability to stay healthy in one’s later life.
• Voiriot G, Philippot Q, Elabbadi A, Elbim C, Chalumeau M, Fartoukh M. Risks related to the use of non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs in community-acquired pneumonia in adult and pediatric patients. J Clin Med. 2019;8(6):786. Read this resource here.
  • This article discusses the advantages and disadvantages to using non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) for pneumonia treatment. Because these drugs are easy to acquire over the counter, they are often used in treatment despite increasing hospitalization risks from the disease.
• Idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis – what is idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis?. Nih.gov. Read this resource here.
  • This NIH article introduces the physiology of idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis and its symptoms. Other physiological complications associated with the disease are also introduced.
• Han S, Mallampalli RK. The role of surfactant in lung disease and host defense against pulmonary infections. Ann Am Thorac Soc. 2015;12(5):765–74. Read this resource here.
  • This article discusses the functions of surfactant in the lungs, the structure that allows its function, and what can go wrong without surfactant. It is useful in the above discussion question regarding surfactant.
• “Newborn breathing conditions – respiratory distress syndrome (RDS),” Nih.gov. Read this resource here.
  • This National Health Institute informational page explains why premature babies lack surfactant and the reasons why this substance is so crucial to alveolar function. Ways in which RDS is treated are also addressed.

About the Creator:

This video was created by a student in the Rice Bioengineering Class of 2024 (used with permission).