Pulmonary Mechanics — Respiratory Physiology

Pulmonary Mechanics MCQs: practice questions

Sample Pulmonary Mechanics multiple-choice questions from Respiratory Physiology.

1. Positive intrapleural pressure during forced expiration tends to:

   • A. Increase alveolar compliance
   • B. Dilate the airways
   • C. Increase airway radius
   • D. Compress the airways
   • E. Prevent airflow entirely in healthy lungs

2. Asthma is classified physiologically as an:

   • A. Disease with increased FEV1/FVC
   • B. Restrictive disease
   • C. Obstructive disease
   • D. Disease with decreased FRC
   • E. Disease with increased lung compliance only

3. Without surfactant, small alveoli are more likely to:

   • A. Increase airflow automatically
   • B. Expand without limit
   • C. Have zero surface tension
   • D. Have increased compliance
   • E. Collapse

4. Small airways do not normally provide the greatest resistance because they are:

   • A. Always maximally constricted
   • B. Arranged in series
   • C. Filled with fluid
   • D. Lined by smooth muscle only
   • E. Arranged in parallel

5. Quiet expiration is normally:

   • A. Active and abdominal
   • B. Passive
   • C. Driven by diaphragm contraction
   • D. Driven by external intercostal contraction
   • E. Dependent on positive intrapleural pressure

6. Surfactant is produced by:

7. Pulmonary surfactant increases lung compliance by:

8. A deep-sea diver breathing dense gas experiences:

9. At rest, before inspiration begins, alveolar pressure is:

10. Breathing a low-density gas such as helium tends to:

11. A patient with COPD may use pursed-lip breathing because it:

12. Parasympathetic stimulation of the airways causes:

13. Compared with normal lungs, COPD typically has:

14. During normal inspiration, lung volume:

15. Airway resistance is inversely related to:

16. Low lung volumes can increase airway resistance because:

17. At FRC, intrapleural pressure is normally:

18. Lung compliance is defined as:

19. If airway radius decreases fourfold, airway resistance increases by:

20. A highly compliant lung requires:

21. Laplace's relationship predicts that alveolar pressure is inversely related to:

22. High lung volumes tend to decrease airway resistance because:

23. During inspiration, intrapleural pressure becomes:

24. During forced expiration, intrapleural pressure may become:

25. The main muscle of quiet inspiration is the:

26. β2-receptor stimulation of bronchial smooth muscle causes:

27. Airflow into the lungs during inspiration occurs because:

28. The major site of airway resistance is the:

29. During normal expiration, alveolar pressure becomes:

30. Pulmonary fibrosis is characterized by: