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Flutter valve for ocopella9/8/2023 ![]() ![]() These cells are loosely square-shaped and have thousands of cilia. The airways leading into the lungs are lined with epithelial cells that protect the airways and lungs. This filtration system is called the “ mucociliary escalator,” or “ mucociliary transport system.” ![]() Our airways and lungs perform a similar filtration process as air passes through them. There are also tiny hair-like structures called cilia that help move the air and mucus through the sinus cavity to prepare it for its journey into the lungs, the GI tract or to be expectorated. The mucous (different than mucus) tissues or membranes that line the nasal cavity have a sticky surface that helps trap debris, like flypaper. If you are a mouth breather, the respiratory tissues will have to handle the job on their own, further down the respiratory tract. When we breathe in through the nose, the air goes through its first warming, filtering, and humidifying process. Congratulations! You have just inhaled a small sample of the many thousands of tiny organisms and a varied array of particulate matter that we breathe in each and every day. In fact, if Lady Macbeth were a chest physiotherapist, she may well have been known for another quote: “Out, damned snot!” Before we discuss how to minimize and mobilize the secretions (mucus) that may accumulate in your airways as a result of your disease, it will be helpful for you to have a basic knowledge of what mucus actually is and what mucus actually does. It is one of the many defense mechanisms in our body’s arsenal that protect us against infection and other un-pleasantries. Written with gratitude to my Co-Author, Marion Mackles, BS, PT, LMTĮveryone has mucus. ![]()
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