APStracts 6:0267A, 1999.

Another view of the role(s) of surfactant and the alveolar model. Hills, B. A. Paediatric Respiratory Research Centre, Mater Children's Hospital, Brisbane, Australia

APStracts 6:0267A, 1999.

Currently the study of surfactant proteins is much in vogue but, in the early days, the physics underlying surfactant function was treated somewhat superficially, leaving assumptions that have become culturally embedded - such as the `bubble' model of the alveolus. This review selectively re-examines these assumptions, comparing each combination of alveolar model and role of surfactant for compatibility with the major features of pulmonary mechanics and alveolar stability, morphology and fluid balance.

Received 1 March 1999; accepted in final form 7 June 1999.
APS Manuscript Number A157-9.
Article publication pending Journal of Applied Physiology.
ISSN 1080-4757 Copyright 1999 The American Physiological Society.
Published in APStracts on 22 June 1999