The instructor of the physiology class for prenursing students is talking about the lower respiratory tract. The instructor talks about the visceral and parietal pleura and the small amount of fluid between the two membranes

Question

What does the instructor tell her students the function of the pleura and the pleural fluid is?
A) Allows for full expansion of the lungs within the thoracic cavity
B) Prevents the lungs from collapsing within the thoracic cavity
C) Determines lung expansion within the thoracic cavity
D) Permits smooth motion of the lungs within the thoracic cavity

Answer 1

Ans: D
Feedback: The visceral pleura covers the lungs; the parietal pleura lines the thorax. The visceral and parietal pleura and the small amount of pleural fluid between these two membranes serve to lubricate the thorax and lungs and permit smooth motion of the lungs within the thoracic cavity with each breath. The pleura does not allow full expansion of the lungs, prevent the lungs from collapsing, or determine lung expansion within the thoracic cavity.