Some effects of carbon dioxide on foreign gas uptake

Abstract

Partitional respirometry in normal subjects breathing 1-5% CO2 indicates a large increase of alveolar dead space, but in the steady state there is no consistent change of diffusing capacity or effective pulmonary blood flow. An apparent early decrease of diffusing capacity is probably an artefact due to difficulties in measuring acetylene uptake with a changing respiratory minute volume, and if Dco is measured by the breath-holding technique, carbon dioxide produces no immediate effect. Hypercapnic hyperventilation does not help in making acetylene uptake conform to a single exponential curve. The ventilatory efficiency indicated by partitional respirometry in a nonuniform system is dependent on both solubility of the test gases and the mean Va/Q ratio. An analogue computer for the solution of Va/Q problems is described. Submitted on August 18, 1958