A mathematical description of the airways of the human lungs.

To study the physiological implications of the morphological structure of the conducting airways of the human lungs algorithms are derived for Model I of Horsfield et al. (1971). These algorithms produce descriptions of every pathway from the trachea to the respiratory bronchioles in terms of the combined airway orders. The distributions of surface area and circumference with airway order for this model are given. Also illustrated is the frequency distribution of pathway lengths in the lungs. Computations involving fluid flow in the airways are illustrated by developing a model for mucociliary clearance.