- Air hunger
Air hunger is the
sensation of the urge tobreath e. It is usually caused by the detection of high levels ofcarbon dioxide in the blood by sensors in thecarotid sinus and is one of the body's homeostatic mechanisms to ensure proper oxygenation. Natural chemicals in the blood such asepinephrine (adrenaline) can also induce an urge to breathe by a separate pathway. Insufficientpulmonary minute ventilation , a sustained breath-hold, constriction of thealveoli of the lungs as inasthma , or high ambient levels of carbon dioxide in the air breathed can cause air hunger resulting in a respiratory distress condition characterized bydyspnea , labored breathing or gasping. Air hunger can be very distressing and triggers strong reactions to restore breathing.In
mammals (with the notable exception of seals and some burrowing mammals), the breathing reflex is triggered by excess of carbon dioxide rather than lack ofoxygen . In particular, this means that air hunger is not always experienced duringasphyxiation . In oxygen-deprived environments, respiration continues to cycle out carbon dioxide but does not bring in sufficient oxygen. Without the required carbon dioxide accumulation, victims may not realize they are being asphyxiated until other symptoms appear, or at all.ee also
*
Hyperventilation syndrome References
*Banzett, Robert. [http://www.hsph.harvard.edu/physiology/dyspnealab/Symposium/Speaker1_AH_Banzett.html Hunger for Air: from Afferent Input to Cerebral Cortex] . "www.hsph.harvard.edu". URL last accessed
February 26 2006 .
*Banzett, Robert. [http://www.hsph.harvard.edu/physiology/dyspnealab/dyspnea_refs.html DYSPNEA RESEARCH LAB Publications]
*Dunn, Katharine. [http://www.harvardmagazine.com/on-line/030627.html Waiting to Inhale]
*Gracely, Richard. [http://www.ampainsoc.org/pub/bulletin/mar01/upda1.htm Dyspnea and Pain: Similarities and Contrasts Between Two Very Unpleasant Sensations] . "http://www.ampainsoc.org". URL last accessedFebruary 26 2006 .
* [http://www.uthscsa.edu/opa/issues/new34-9/PET.html PET images reveal brain's response to hunger for air]
Wikimedia Foundation. 2010.