An experimental investigation to model wheezing in lungs
A quarter of the world's population experience wheezing. These sounds have been used for diagnosis since the time of the Ebers Papyrus (ca 1500 BC). We know that wheezing is a result of the oscillations of the airways that make up the lung. However, the physical mechanisms for the onset of whee...
| Main Authors: | , , |
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
| Published: |
The Royal Society
2021-02-01
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| Series: | Royal Society Open Science |
| Subjects: | |
| Online Access: | https://royalsocietypublishing.org/doi/pdf/10.1098/rsos.201951 |
| _version_ | 1818576641209663488 |
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| author | A. L. Gregory A. Agarwal J. Lasenby |
| author_facet | A. L. Gregory A. Agarwal J. Lasenby |
| author_sort | A. L. Gregory |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | A quarter of the world's population experience wheezing. These sounds have been used for diagnosis since the time of the Ebers Papyrus (ca 1500 BC). We know that wheezing is a result of the oscillations of the airways that make up the lung. However, the physical mechanisms for the onset of wheezing remain poorly understood, and we do not have a quantitative model to predict when wheezing occurs. We address these issues in this paper. We model the airways of the lungs by a modified Starling resistor in which airflow is driven through thin, stretched elastic tubes. By completing systematic experiments, we find a generalized ‘tube law’ that describes how the cross-sectional area of the tubes change in response to the transmural pressure difference across them. We find the necessary conditions for the onset of oscillations that represent wheezing and propose a flutter-like instability model for it about a heavily deformed state of the tube. Our findings allow for a predictive tool for wheezing in lungs, which could lead to better diagnosis and treatment of lung diseases. |
| first_indexed | 2024-12-16T06:17:15Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-b609c059f32a4d5c89e30891ab8d2c40 |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 2054-5703 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-12-16T06:17:15Z |
| publishDate | 2021-02-01 |
| publisher | The Royal Society |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Royal Society Open Science |
| spelling | doaj.art-b609c059f32a4d5c89e30891ab8d2c402022-12-21T22:41:14ZengThe Royal SocietyRoyal Society Open Science2054-57032021-02-018210.1098/rsos.201951201951An experimental investigation to model wheezing in lungsA. L. GregoryA. AgarwalJ. LasenbyA quarter of the world's population experience wheezing. These sounds have been used for diagnosis since the time of the Ebers Papyrus (ca 1500 BC). We know that wheezing is a result of the oscillations of the airways that make up the lung. However, the physical mechanisms for the onset of wheezing remain poorly understood, and we do not have a quantitative model to predict when wheezing occurs. We address these issues in this paper. We model the airways of the lungs by a modified Starling resistor in which airflow is driven through thin, stretched elastic tubes. By completing systematic experiments, we find a generalized ‘tube law’ that describes how the cross-sectional area of the tubes change in response to the transmural pressure difference across them. We find the necessary conditions for the onset of oscillations that represent wheezing and propose a flutter-like instability model for it about a heavily deformed state of the tube. Our findings allow for a predictive tool for wheezing in lungs, which could lead to better diagnosis and treatment of lung diseases.https://royalsocietypublishing.org/doi/pdf/10.1098/rsos.201951wheezingstarling resistorstethoscope |
| spellingShingle | A. L. Gregory A. Agarwal J. Lasenby An experimental investigation to model wheezing in lungs Royal Society Open Science wheezing starling resistor stethoscope |
| title | An experimental investigation to model wheezing in lungs |
| title_full | An experimental investigation to model wheezing in lungs |
| title_fullStr | An experimental investigation to model wheezing in lungs |
| title_full_unstemmed | An experimental investigation to model wheezing in lungs |
| title_short | An experimental investigation to model wheezing in lungs |
| title_sort | experimental investigation to model wheezing in lungs |
| topic | wheezing starling resistor stethoscope |
| url | https://royalsocietypublishing.org/doi/pdf/10.1098/rsos.201951 |
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