Ventilation inhomogeneity in oleic acid induced pulmonary edema. Tsang, John Y. C., Michael J. Emery, and Michael P. Hlastala. UBC Pulmonary Research Laboratory, St. Paul's Hospital, 1081 Burrard Street, Vancouver, B.C., Canada V6Z 1Y6, Departments of Physiology & Biophysics and of Medicine, University of Washington, Seattle, WA 98195
APStracts 3:0578A, 1996.
Oleic acid causes permeability pulmonary edema in the lung, resulting in impairment of gas exchange and ventilation perfusion heterogeneity and mismatch. Previous studies have shown that by using the multiple breath helium washout (MBHW) technique, ventilation inhomogeneity (V.I.) can be quantitatively partitioned into two components, i.e., convective dependent inhomogeneity (cdi) and diffusive-convective dependent inhomogeneity (dcdi). Changes in V.I., as represented by the normalized slope of the phase III alveolar plateau, were studied for 120 minutes in 5 anaesthetized mongrel dogs which were ventilated under paralysis by a constant flow linear motor ventilator. These animals received oleic acid (0.1 mg/Kg) infusion into the right atrium at time = 0 minutes. MBHW's were done in duplicate for 18 breaths every 40 minutes afterwards. Three other dogs which received only normal saline served as controls. The data show that after oleic acid infusion, dcdi which represents V.I. in peripheral airways is responsible for the increasing total V.I. as lung water accumulates progressively over time. Cdi, which represents V.I. between larger conductive airways remains relatively constant throughout. This observation can be explained by increases in the heterogeneity of tissue compliance in the periphery, distal airway closure or decreases in ventilation through collateral channels.

Received 17 June 1996; accepted in final form 12 December 1996.
APS Manuscript Number A557-6.
Article publication pending Journal of Applied Physiology.
ISSN 1080-4757 Copyright 1996 The American Physiological Society.
Published in APStracts on 31 December 1996