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Lung volumes and lung capacities refer to the volume of air in the lungs at different phases of the respiratory cycle. The average total lung capacity of an adult human male is about 6 litres of air. [1] Tidal breathing is normal, resting breathing; the tidal volume is the volume of air that is inhaled or exhaled in only a single such breath.
Air then travels continuously from the air sacs at the back, through the lungs, which are relatively fixed in size, to the air sacs at the front. From here, the air is exhaled. These fixed size lungs are called "circulatory lungs", as distinct from the "bellows-type lungs" found in most other animals. [106] [108]
The lungs expand and contract during the breathing cycle, drawing air in and out of the lungs. The volume of air moved in or out of the lungs under normal resting circumstances (the resting tidal volume of about 500 ml), and volumes moved during maximally forced inhalation and maximally forced exhalation are measured in humans by spirometry. [12]
TLC: Total lung capacity: the volume in the lungs at maximal inflation, the sum of VC and RV. TV: Tidal volume: that volume of air moved into or out of the lungs in 1 breath (TV indicates a subdivision of the lung; when tidal volume is precisely measured, as in gas exchange calculation, the symbol TV or V T is used.)
TLC: Total lung capacity: the volume in the lungs at maximal inflation, the sum of VC and RV. TV: Tidal volume: that volume of air moved into or out of the lungs in 1 breath (TV indicates a subdivision of the lung; when tidal volume is precisely measured, as in gas exchange calculation, the symbol TV or V T is used.)
The plethysmography technique applies Boyle's law and uses measurements of volume and pressure changes to determine total lung volume, assuming temperature is constant. [8] There are four lung volumes and four lung capacities. A lung's capacity consists of two or more lung volumes.
In combination with other physiological measurements, the vital capacity can help make a diagnosis of underlying lung disease. Furthermore, the vital capacity is used to determine the severity of respiratory muscle involvement in neuromuscular disease, and can guide treatment decisions in Guillain–Barré syndrome and myasthenic crisis.
Following are terms that specify a type of lung size and/or activity. More specific definitions may be found in individual articles. Eupnea – normal breathing; Apnea – absence of breathing