Environmental Factors in Respiratory Disease

Environmental Factors in Respiratory Disease provides an overview of the state of knowledge on the role of environmental factors in respiratory disease. The book opens with a discussion of some trends and developments which bear on concerns with respiratory disease and the environment. This is followed by separate chapters on pulmonary anatomy and physiology as it relates to the problem of environmental factors in respiratory disease; various tracheobronchial responses to insult; the response of alveoli of the lung to damaging agents; and effects of chronic respiratory disease on lung and heart functions. Subsequent chapters deal with environmental pollutants, their routes of transport, and impact on lung function; specific reactions of the lung that can be attributed to a particular material or agent; host defense mechanisms in the lung; and interactions of infectious diseases and air pollutants. This text will be helpful to those who need to know the state of current knowledge on the health significance of environmental factors in respiratory disease but who do not have the time to pursue the detailed literature or to seek a compilation directed to their special needs.