Deck 25: Structure and Function of the Pulmonary System

Question 1

The nurse is describing the slit-shaped space between the true vocal cords.What term should the nurse use?

A) Glottis
B) Epiglottis
C) Larynx
D) Carina

Answer 1

Glottis

Question 2

If an individual with respiratory difficulty were retaining too much carbon dioxide,which of the following compensatory responses would the nurse expect to be initiated?

A) Increase in respiratory rate
B) Decrease in ventilation rate
C) Increase in tidal volume
D) Vasodilation of the pulmonary arterioles

Answer 2

Increase in respiratory rate

Question 3

An aide asks a nurse how surfactant works.How should the nurse respond? Surfactant facilitates alveolar distention and ventilation by:

A) Decreasing thoracic compliance
B) Attracting water to the alveolar surface
C) Decreasing surface tension in alveoli
D) Increasing diffusion in alveoli

Answer 3

Decreasing surface tension in alveoli

Question 4

The nurse is describing the receptors in the lung that decrease ventilatory rate and volume when stimulated.Which receptors is the nurse discussing?

A) Carbon dioxide receptors
B) Baroreceptors
C) Stretch receptors
D) Chemoreceptors

Question 5

A nurse remembers the majority of total airway resistance occurs in the:

A) Bronchi
B) Nose
C) Oral pharynx
D) Diaphragm

Question 6

A 42-year-old male was involved in a motor vehicle accident during which he suffered a severe head injury.He died shortly after the accident from loss of respiration.The nurse suspects the area of the brain most likely involved is the:

A) Cerebral cortex
B) Thalamus
C) Basal ganglia
D) Brainstem

Question 7

During inspiration,muscular contraction of the diaphragm causes air to move into the lung.The mechanisms that drive air movement during inspiration are a(n):

A) Decrease in intra-alveolar pressure and shortening of the rib cage
B) Decrease in the size of the thorax and alveolar expansion
C) Increase in the size of the thorax and a decrease in intrapleural pressure
D) Increase in atmospheric pressure and intrapleural pressure

Question 8

The pressure required to inflate an alveolus is inversely related to:

A) Wall thickness
B) Surface tension
C) Minute volume
D) Alveolar radius

Question 9

A nurse recalls the pleural membranes are examples of _____ membranes.

A) Mucous
B) Serous
C) Synovial
D) Peritoneal

Question 10

A newborn is in respiratory distress and requires ventilation.Tests reveal that he does not produce surfactant due to the absence of:

A) Mucus-producing cells
B) Type II alveolar cells
C) Alveolar macrophages
D) Goblet cells

Question 11

Students in a histology class are assigned to identify regions of the lung.The slide shows a basement membrane,capillary lumen,and macrophages.The students are looking at the:

A) Trachea
B) Bronchioles
C) Alveoli
D) Bronchus

Question 12

Which principle should the nurse remember while planning care for a patient with respiratory problems? Diffusion of respiratory gases takes place at the:

A) Alveolocapillary membrane
B) Visceral pleurae
C) Parietal pleurae
D) Respiratory center

Question 13

After entering a room of chemical fog,a 20-year-old male cannot stop sneezing.Which of the following structures is primarily responsible for his sneezing?

A) Upper respiratory tract mucosa
B) Irritant receptors in the trachea and large airways
C) Irritant receptors in the nostrils
D) Upper respiratory nasal hairs and turbinates

Question 14

The nurse is describing the movement of blood into and out of the capillary beds of the lungs to the body organs and tissues.What term should the nurse use to describe this process?

A) Perfusion
B) Ventilation
C) Diffusion
D) Circulation

Question 15

While reviewing the results of the pulmonary functions test,the nurse is aware that the maximum amount of gas that can be displaced (expired)from the lung is called:

A) Vital capacity (VC)
B) Total lung capacity
C) Functional capacity
D) Residual volume

Question 16

The pulmonologist talks about the receptors that respond to increased pulmonary capillary pressure.What term will indicate the nurse understands? They are called:

A) Irritant receptors
B) Chemoreceptors
C) Stretch receptors
D) J receptors

Question 17

The nasopharynx is lined with a ciliated mucosal membrane with a highly vascular blood supply.The nurse is discussing the functions of this membrane.Which information should be included? One function of the membrane is to:

A) Absorb air
B) Humidify air
C) Cool air
D) Exchange gases

Question 18

While planning care for a patient with respiratory difficulty and retaining too much carbon dioxide,which principle should the nurse recall? _______ would be stimulated in an attempt to maintain a normal homeostatic state.

A) Irritant receptors
B) Stretch receptors
C) Peripheral chemoreceptors
D) Central chemoreceptors

Question 19

A nurse is teaching about the functions of the pulmonary system.Which information should the nurse include? One of the functions of the pulmonary system is the:

A) Expelling of bacteria
B) Exchange of gases between the environment and blood
C) Movement of blood into and out of the capillaries
D) Principle mechanism for cooling of the heart

Question 20

The pulmonologist is presenting a workshop over the lungs.Which information should be included? The lung receives parasympathetic innervation by the _____ nerve.

A) Vagus
B) Phrenic
C) Brachial
D) Pectoral

Question 21

In a patient with acidosis or a fever,the nurse would expect the oxyhemoglobin dissociation curve to shift:

A) To the right, causing more O₂ to be released to the cells
B) To the left, allowing less O₂ to be released to the cells
C) Downward, allowing less O₂ to dissolve in the plasma
D) Upward, allowing more O₂ to dissolve in the plasma

Question 22

A consequence of alveolar hypoxia is:

A) Reactive vasodilation
B) Local bronchoconstriction
C) Decreased respiratory rate
D) Pulmonary artery vasoconstriction

Question 23

____% of oxygen (O₂)enters the bloodstream bound to hemoglobin

Question 24

A pulmonologist is discussing the base of the lungs with staff.Which information should be included? At the base of the lungs:

A) Alveolar gas pressure exceeds arterial perfusion pressure.
B) Arterial perfusion pressure and alveolar gas pressure are less than at the apex.
C) Arterial perfusion pressure exceeds alveolar gas pressure.
D) Arterial perfusion and alveolar gas pressure are equal.

Question 25

A pulmonologist,while presenting a seminar on partial pressures of oxygen,would include which statement? At sea level,the partial pressure of oxygen is approximately ___% (round to the nearest whole number).

Question 26

Which principle should the nurse remember while planning care for a patient with a respiratory problem? Under most circumstances,increased work of breathing results in:

A) Increased partial pressure of O₂ in the lungs
B) Increased oxygen consumption
C) Decreased PaCO₂
D) Alterations in alveolar perfusion

Question 27

While auscultating a patient's lungs,a nurse recalls the alveoli in the apexes of the lungs are _____ than alveoli in the bases.

A) Larger
B) More numerous
C) More compliant
D) Less perfused

Question 28

What is the partial pressure of oxygen in the lung given the following conditions?
Percentage of oxygen in air: 20
Barometric pressure: 700 mm Hg

A) 111 mm Hg
B) 124 mm Hg
C) 131 mm Hg
D) 140 mm Hg

Question 29

An 80-year-old male presents to his primary care provider reporting difficulty breathing.Pulmonary function tests reveal that he has increased residual volume.A nurse suspects the most likely cause of this disorder is _____ in lung compliance.

A) An increase
B) A decrease
C) No change
D) An absence

Question 30

Which of the following terms should the nurse use when there is a balance between outward recoil of the chest wall and inward recoil of lungs at rest?

A) Functional residual capacity (FRC) is reached.
B) Vital capacity (VC) is reached.
C) Total lung capacity (TLC) is reached.
D) Residual volume (RV) is reached.

Question 31

A nurse is teaching staff about the respiratory bronchi.Which information should the nurse include? __________ may be found in the walls of the respiratory bronchi? (Select all that apply,)

A) Smooth muscle
B) Surfactant-producing glands
C) Goblet cells
D) Ciliated cells
E) Epithelial lining

Question 32

If a patient's hemoglobin concentration (Hb)is 14 g/100 ml and arterial oxygen saturation (SaO₂)is 98%,what would be his arterial oxygen content? Remember that 1.34 ml O₂ is the maximum amount of oxygen that can be transported per gram of hemoglobin.
Hint: O? content = (1.34 ´ Hb)SaO₂

A) 13.72 ml O2 per 100 ml blood
B) 15.38 ml O2 per 100 ml blood
C) 18.76 ml O2 per 100 ml blood
D) 19.30 ml O2 per 100 ml blood

Question 33

A patient wants to know how carbon dioxide is transported in the body.How should the nurse respond? Carbon dioxide (CO₂)is mainly transported in the blood:

A) Attached to oxygen (O₂)
B) Dissolved in red blood cells
C) Combined with albumin
D) In the form of bicarbonate

Question 34

A patient asks how oxygen is transported in the body.What is the nurse's best response? Most of the oxygen (O₂)is transported:

A) Dissolved in the plasma
B) Bound to hemoglobin
C) In the form of carbon dioxide (CO₂)
D) As a free-floating molecule

Question 35

_____ seconds is required for oxygen (O₂)concentration to equilibrate (equalize)across the alveolocapillary membrane.