Bronchial dimensions and stature.

The summed cross-sectional area of the right main and left main bronchi was found to be directly related (r=plus0.54) to body length in 64 necropsies, and the best relation was to the square of the body length. These data, in conjunction with previously published information, indicate that tall subjects have larger lungs having the same number of main bronchi and small airways that are larger than those of short subjects. Tall subjects have more alveoli than short subjects, but it is not known what differences in alveolar size exist.