What type of pressure is the amount of force that is exerted by gases in the air surrounding any given surface?

• Correct Answer: atmospheric
• gravitational
• fluid
• vapor

Explanation: Pulmonary ventilation is dependent on three types of pressure: atmospheric, intra-alveolar, and interpleural. Atmospheric pressure is the amount of force that is exerted by gases in the air surrounding any given surface, such as the body. Atmospheric pressure can be expressed in terms of the unit atmosphere, abbreviated atm, or in millimeters of mercury (mm Hg). One atm is equal to 760 mm Hg, which is the atmospheric pressure at sea level. Typically, for respiration, other pressure values are discussed in relation to atmospheric pressure. Therefore, negative pressure is pressure lower than the atmospheric pressure, whereas positive pressure is pressure that it is greater than the atmospheric pressure. A pressure that is equal to the atmospheric pressure is expressed as zero. Intra-alveolar pressure is the pressure of the air within the alveoli, which changes during the different phases of breathing (Figure 22.16). Because the alveoli are connected to the atmosphere via the tubing of the airways (similar to the two- and one-liter containers in the example above), the interpulmonary pressure of the alveoli always equalizes with the atmospheric pressure.

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