A simple method for the representative sampling of lungs of diverse size.

The proportion of non-parenchyma (non-gas exchanging tissue) varies with postnatal age and with the distance from the hilum of the lung. We have sampled 11 lungs varying in volume from 24.7 ml to 1308 ml and found that the mid-sagittal slice, or a combination of the two central slices in a lung producing four slices, adequately represents the amount of non-parenchyma and of air in bronchi and bronchioles in the entire lung.