Nasopulmonary Mechanics-Experimental Evidence of the Influence of the Upper Airway Upon the Lower

Abstract

Nasal obstruction from whatever source, anatomic or infectious, causes measurably increased lower airway resistance. This has been verified by, (1) establishment of control groups of normal subjects for each of our successive studies, (2) oral and nasal measurements of pulmonary function in subjects with nasal and laryngeal obstruction, with postoperative observation, in some cases, for evaluation of changes in respiratory mechanics following corrective surgery, (3) establishment of baseline measurements of normal and abnormal pulmonary function in the human, (4) partitioning of total pulmonary resistance in the human and dog, and (5) long term observation of various types of surgically created nasal obstruction, as well as induced inflammation of the nasal cavities and paranasal sinuses in dogs, in order to study the effect of these conditions upon the function or mechanics of the lower airway.