What are pleural recesses?

What are pleural recesses?

The pleural recesses are potential spaces within the thoracic cavity where, particularly in expiration, the visceral and parietal pleura are relatively distant. Such is the negative pressure of the serous fluid lining the cavity with the lung relatively contracted, that parietal pleura may be drawn inwards.

What is the functional significance of the pleural recesses?

The pleural cavity, also known as the intrapleural space, contains pleural fluid secreted by the mesothelial cells. The fluid allows the layers to glide over each other as the lungs inflate and deflate during respiration.

What is a pleural space definition?

(PLOOR-ul KA-vuh-tee) The space enclosed by the pleura, which is a thin layer of tissue that covers the lungs and lines the interior wall of the chest cavity.

What are the three openings in the diaphragm?

Since one function of the diaphragm is to provide passageway for structures from the thorax to the abdomen, its surface has several openings: caval opening (vena caval foramen), esophageal hiatus, and aortic hiatus.

What causes negative pleural pressure?

Competing forces within the thorax cause the formation of the negative intrapleural pressure. One of these forces relates to the elasticity of the lungs themselves—elastic tissue pulls the lungs inward, away from the thoracic wall.

Why is pleurisy so painful?

If you have pleurisy, these tissues swell and become inflamed. As a result, the two layers of the pleural membrane rub against each other like two pieces of sandpaper, producing pain when you inhale and exhale. The pleuritic pain lessens or stops when you hold your breath.

Is pleural a serous membrane?

A pleura is a serous membrane that folds back on itself to form a two-layered membranous pleural sac. The outer layer is called the parietal pleura and attaches to the chest wall. The inner layer is called the visceral pleura and covers the lungs, blood vessels, nerves, and bronchi.

What is the function of the pleural cavity?

Pleural fluid functions by lubricating the space between the pleura, allowing the pleura to glide smoothly during inhalation and exhalation. In this way, it cushions delicate lung tissues against friction from the ribs and the chest wall itself. There are several conditions that can affect the pleural cavity and, by default, the pleural fluid.

Where is the pleura located?

The pleura is a thin, serous layer that covers the lungs (visceral pleura) and is reflected onto the chest wall and pericardium (parietal pleura).

What is the pleura and pleural space?

The pleura is the thin membrane that lines the outside of the lungs and the inside of the chest cavity. Pleurisy is an inflammation (swelling or irritation) of these two layers of tissue. The pleural space is a thin area between the chest lining and the membrane that lines the lungs.

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