Pulmonary Mechanics during Pregnancy

J. Bernard L. Gee; Bernard S. Packer; J. Eugene Millen; E. D. Robin

doi:10.1172/JCI105600

Department of Medicine, University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine, Pittsburgh, Pa.

†

Address requests for reprints to Dr. J. Bernard L. Gee, Dept. of Medicine, University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine, Pittsburgh, Pa. 15213.

‡

Fellow of the Pennsylvania Thoracic Society.

Submitted for publication November 7, 1966; accepted February 17, 1967.

This work was supported in part by grant HE-05059 from the National Institutes of Health and in part by a grant from the Tuberculosis League of Pittsburgh.

Find articles by Gee, J. in: JCI | PubMed | Google Scholar

Department of Medicine, University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine, Pittsburgh, Pa.

†

Address requests for reprints to Dr. J. Bernard L. Gee, Dept. of Medicine, University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine, Pittsburgh, Pa. 15213.

‡

Fellow of the Pennsylvania Thoracic Society.

Submitted for publication November 7, 1966; accepted February 17, 1967.

This work was supported in part by grant HE-05059 from the National Institutes of Health and in part by a grant from the Tuberculosis League of Pittsburgh.

Find articles by Packer, B. in: JCI | PubMed | Google Scholar

Department of Medicine, University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine, Pittsburgh, Pa.

†

Address requests for reprints to Dr. J. Bernard L. Gee, Dept. of Medicine, University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine, Pittsburgh, Pa. 15213.

‡

Fellow of the Pennsylvania Thoracic Society.

Submitted for publication November 7, 1966; accepted February 17, 1967.

This work was supported in part by grant HE-05059 from the National Institutes of Health and in part by a grant from the Tuberculosis League of Pittsburgh.

Find articles by Millen, J. in: JCI | PubMed | Google Scholar

Department of Medicine, University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine, Pittsburgh, Pa.

†

Address requests for reprints to Dr. J. Bernard L. Gee, Dept. of Medicine, University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine, Pittsburgh, Pa. 15213.

‡

Fellow of the Pennsylvania Thoracic Society.

Submitted for publication November 7, 1966; accepted February 17, 1967.

This work was supported in part by grant HE-05059 from the National Institutes of Health and in part by a grant from the Tuberculosis League of Pittsburgh.

Find articles by Robin, E. in: JCI | PubMed | Google Scholar

Published in Volume 46, Issue 6 on June 1, 1967
J Clin Invest. 1967;46(6):945–952. https://doi.org/10.1172/JCI105600.
© 1967 The American Society for Clinical Investigation

Published June 1, 1967 - Version history

Previously reported changes in static lung volumes during pregnancy have been confirmed.

Measurements of lung compliance (C_L) and total pulmonary resistance (R_L) were made in 10 women in the last trimester of pregnancy and 2 months postpartum, employing an esophageal balloon and recording spirometer. C_L was unaffected by pregnancy, but R_L was 50% below normal during pregnancy.

Measurements of airway conductance (C_A) were made, employing the constant pressure body plethysmograph on 14 nonpregnant and 13 pregnant women. Specific airway conductance was increased during pregnancy.

Serial measurements of C_A indicated a progressive increase beginning at about 6 months of gestation and a return to normal by 2 months postpartum.

The mechanism of the increased C_A during pregnancy is not known. It may be related to changes in bronchial smooth muscle tone and conceivably explains the tolerance of certain patients with lung resections to pregnancy.