Effect of inflation on microvascular pressures in lungs of young rabbits

We have examined the effect of positive pressure inflation on the longitudinal distribution of vascular resistance and intravascular pressures in isolated blood-perfused lungs of 3- to 4-wk-old rabbits. Lungs were perfused in zone 3 at airway inflation pressures (P airway) of 6, 14, and 19 cmH2O (pleural pressure, atmospheric) corresponding to 60, 80, and 90% of total lung capacity. We measured microvascular pressures by the micropipette servo-nulling technique in 20- to 50-microns diameter subpleural arterioles and venules. Pulmonary arterial and left atrial pressures were also measured. Lung blood flow was kept constant at 145 +/- 18 ml X kg body wt-1 X min-1. We found that at P airway of 6 cmH2O, approximately 55% of the total pressure drop was in arteries, approximately 23% in microvessels, and approximately 22% in veins. With increasing P airway and lung volume, there was a significant decrease in arterial and venous resistance, but an increase in resistance in microvessels. We conclude that lung inflation significantly alters the distribution of segmental vascular resistance, and therefore lung volume is an important variable that should be considered during estimation of capillary filtration pressure.