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On the theory of blood-tissue exchanges: III. Circulation and inert-gas exchanges at the lung with special reference to saturation

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Abstract

The results of a simple analysis of the situation in the lungs with regard to the uptake of inert gases is presented. It is shown that the gas transfer at the lung governs the early stages of gas uptake by a body region so that the latter conceivably could be used as an index of lung function. It is shown that the so-called Fick Principle, which serves as the basis of most indirect cardiac output methods, is an approximation to a more general equation. When the latter equation is applied to a slowly permeating gas, it offers the possibility of determining functional lung surface.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Naval Medical Research Institute, National Naval Medical Center, Bethesda, Maryland

    M. F. Morales ENS. & R. E. Smith Lieu, tH-V(S), USNR

Authors
  1. M. F. Morales ENS.
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  2. R. E. Smith Lieu, tH-V(S), USNR
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The material in this article should be construed only as the personal opinion of the writers and not as representing the opinion of the Navy Department officially.

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Morales, M.F., Smith, R.E. On the theory of blood-tissue exchanges: III. Circulation and inert-gas exchanges at the lung with special reference to saturation. Bulletin of Mathematical Biophysics 6, 141–152 (1944). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF02478431

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