Effects of Age on Deposition of Inhaled Aerosols in the Human Lung

Abstract

Department of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering, State University of New York at Buffalo, Amherst NY 14260 Theoretical calculations have been made for the deposition of inhaled aerosol particles in the respiratory tract of humans from birth to adulthood. Variations of both airway structure and respiratory condition with age have been taken into consideration. It is found that these variations do not lead to any significant changes in the mechanisms of deposition in the air passages. For all particle sizes, total deposition in the respiratory tract and deposition in the head region are found to be higher for children than that for adults. However, depositions in the tracheobronchial and alveolar region in a child could be larger or smaller, depending upon the particle size.