Breathing

Introduction

In this laboratory, you will record breathing movements with a respiratory belt transducer fastened
around the abdomen. You will investigate various aspects of breathing, including the ability to hold the
breath, hyperventilation, rebreathing, and the relation between breathing and heart rate.

Learning Objectives

By the end of today's laboratory you will be able to describe and explain the:

 Effects on breathing of voluntary hyperventilation

 Effects on the respiratory pattern of rebreathing expired gas
 Relationship between breathing and heart rate

This device was developed by the French scientist Étienne-

Jules Marey (1830-1904) to indicate movements of the chest An example of an early spirometer:
due to breathing. It is mounted on a spring plate which Hutchinsons spirometer.
returns to its original position when the breath is expired.

Procedure

1. Fasten the respiratory belt around the abdomen of a volunteer, as shown. The transducer
should be:
o At the front of the body, level with the navel.
o Tightened sufficiently that it remains under tension even when the subject fully exhales.

The respiratory belt transducer can be used over clothing, and it doesn't matter whether the
volunteer is sitting or standing, so long as they are comfortable (this is quite a long exercise). Because

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breathing patterns differ, you may need to reposition the transducer over the chest rather than the
abdomen to get the best signal.

2. Connect the plug on the respiratory belt transducer cable to Input 1 on the front of the
PowerLab.

It is important when recording normal respiration that the volunteer is facing away from the
computer screen and is not consciously controlling breathing. The volunteer may have to stare out a
window or read a book to avoid conscious control of respiration.

Exercise 1

In this exercise, you will record normal and rapid breathing, and examine the effects of holding your
breath after inhaling and after exhaling.

Procedure

1. Click Start.
2. Ask the volunteer to breathe rapidly for a few seconds, and then to breathe slowly. Examine the
Breath Rate channel, there should be obvious changes in rate.
3. Enter a comment: 'Baseline 1' in the slow breathing region of the data.
4. Click Add.
5. Record 2-3 minutes of normal, quiet breathing and observe the trace.
6. Enter a comment: 'inhale, hold'.
7. Click Add, and immediately ask the volunteer to take a deep breath and hold it in for as long as
possible.
8. Enter a comment: 'breathe'.
9. When the volunteer begins to breathe again, click Add .
10. Wait until a normal (baseline) breathing pattern resumes; then let the volunteer rest and
breathe normally for another 2-3 minutes.
11. Enter a comment: 'exhale, hold'.
12. Click Add, and immediately ask the volunteer to breathe out fully and hold the breath for as long
as possible.
13. Enter a comment: 'breathe'.
14. When the volunteer begins breathing click Add.
15. Continue recording until a normal (baseline) pattern resumes.

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 16. Click Stop.

The volunteer can now relax and breathe normally.

Analysis

1. In the Breathing channel, place the Marker on the large peak following the comment 'inhale,
hold'.
2. Move the Waveform Cursor to the start of the first breath afterwards, which should be
preceded by the comment 'breathe'.
3. Click to place the selected data in the Value panel and drag it from the Value panel into the
appropriate cell of the table.
4. Drag the Marker to the large (negative) peak right after the comment 'exhale, hold'.
5. Move the Waveform Cursor to the start of the first breath afterwards, which should also be
preceded by the comment 'breathe'.
6. Click to place the selected data in the Value panel and drag it from the Value panel into the
appropriate cell of the table.

Exercise 2

In this exercise, you will record the effect of voluntary hyperventilation on breath-holding and the
recovery of normal breathing rhythm.

Safety considerations

Procedure

1. Click Start.
2. Enter a comment 'baseline', click Add and ask the volunteer to maintain normal respiration for
2-3 minutes.
3. Enter a comment: 'inhale, hold'.
4. Click Add, and immediately ask the volunteer to take a deep breath and hold it in for as long as
possible.
5. Enter a comment: 'breathe'.
6. When the volunteer begins to breathe again, click Add .
7. Record the subject's normal respiration for 2-3 minutes. During this time, enter a comment:
'hyperventilate'.
8. Click Add and immediately ask the volunteer to hyperventilate by breathing as quickly and as
deeply as possible for 30 seconds.
9. Enter a comment: 'breathe'.
10. After the 30 seconds of hyperventilation click Add, then immediately tell the volunteer to begin
breathing normally again.
11. Wait until a normal breathing pattern resumes; then let the volunteer rest and breathe normally
for another 2-3 minutes.
12. Enter a comment: 'hyperventilate'.
13. Click Add, then immediately ask the volunteer to hyperventilate again by breathing as quickly
and as deeply as possible for 30 seconds.

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 14. Enter a comment: 'inhale, hold'.
15. After the 30 seconds of hyperventilation click Add, and Immediately ask the volunteer to take a
deep breath and hold it in for as long as possible.
16. Enter a comment: 'breathe'.
17. When the volunteer begins breathing click Add.
18. Click Stop.

The volunteer can now relax and breathe normally.

Analysis

1. In the Breath Rate channel, select an area representing your normal breathing rate prior to the
'inhale, hold' comment. This will give you the average breathing rate for that period of time.
2. Drag the the Breath Rate data from the Value Panel into the appropriate cell of the table.
3. In the Breathing channel, select the period of time for which the subject held their breath (from
the 'inhale, hold' comment to the 'breathe' comment), and drag this Breathing Selection
Duration data from the Value Panel to the appropriate cell in the table.
4. Repeat steps 1-3 for the hyperventilation period and the subsequent breath-hold.

Exercise 3

In this exercise, you will observe the effect of rebreathing exhaled gases. You will need to obtain a
medium-sized paper bag. When re-breathing, the volunteer should place this so that it covers the nose
and mouth and forms a tight seal.

Procedure

1. Click Start. Enter a comment: 'baseline', and click Add.

2. Record the baseline for 2-3 minutes.
3. Enter a comment: 'rebreathing'.
4. Click Add and immediately ask the volunteer to place the paper bag over the nose and mouth,
and rebreathe the air in the bag.
5. Enter a comment: 'breathe'.
6. After 60 seconds of rebreathing, click Add; then immediately ask the volunteer to remove the
paper bag from the nose and mouth.
7. Continue recording for 60 seconds.
8. Click Stop.

Analysis

Rebreathing from a closed bag results in arterial hypercapnia (raised partial pressure of carbon dioxide),
which stimulates respiration. How was this evident in this exercise? (That is, did the depth or rate or
both increase during rebreathing compared to normal breathing?)

Procedure

1. Leave the respiratory belt fastened around the abdomen of the volunteer.

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 2. Connect the finger pulse transducer to Input 2 on the PowerLab.
3. Place the pressure pad of the finger pulse transducer against the tip of the middle finger of
either hand of the volunteer. Use the Velcro strap to attach it firmly - neither loose nor tight.
4. Ensure that the person sits quietly with his or her hands resting in their lap, or on a bench, to
minimize transducer movements.

Exercise 4

In this exercise, you will record and examine the effect of breath-holding on heart rate.

Procedure

1. Click Start.
2. Record a baseline heart rate and breathing pattern for two minutes. (Variation in the heart rate
is most evident with slow, deep breathing.)
3. After recording the baseline signals, enter a comment: 'inhale, hold'.
4. Click Add, and immediately ask the volunteer to take a deep breath and hold it in for as long as
possible.
5. While the volunteer is not breathing, enter a comment: 'breathe'.
6. When the volunteer begins breathing, click Add.
7. Click Stop.

The volunteer can now relax and breathe normally.

Analysis

Heart rate variations within the breathing cycle should be seen best at a timescale compression of 20:1.

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