Strömungssimulation und Klimatisierung in der Nase

Abstract

Heating and humidification of the respiratory air are the main functions of the nasal airways in addition to cleansing and olfaction. Optimal nasal air conditioning is mandatory for an ideal pulmonary gas exchange in order to avoid dessication and adhesion of the alveolar capillary bed. The complex three-dimensional anatomical structure of the nose makes it impossible to perform detailed in vivo studies on intranasal heating and humidification within the entire nasal airways applying various technical set-ups. The main problem of in vivo temperature and humidity measurements is a poor spatial and time resolution. Therefore, in vivo measurements are feasible to a restricted extent, only providing single temperature values as the complete nose is not entirely accessible. Therefore, data on the overall performance of the nose are only based on one single measurement within each nasal segment. In vivo measurements within the entire nose are not feasible. These serious technical issues concerning in vivo measurements led to a large number of numerical simulation projects in the last few years providing novel information about the complex functions of the nasal airways. In general, numerical simulations only calculate predictions in a computational model, e. g. realistic nose model, depending on the setting of the boundary conditions. Therefore, numerical simulations achieve only approximations of a possible real situation. The aim of this report is the synopsis of the technical expertise on the field of in vivo nasal air conditioning, the novel information of numerical simulations and the current state of knowledge on the influence of nasal and sinus surgery on nasal air conditioning.

Rhinitis sicca, dry nose and atrophic rhinitis: a review of the literature

“…One of the chief functions of the nose is to warm and moisten the inspired air and another function is to recover the moisture from the expired air [1].…”

Nasal Conditioning of Inspired Air, Innate Immunity in the Respiratory Tract and SARS-COV-2 Infectivity

“…The nasal cavity has an important function in warming and humidifying (conditioning) inspired air before it enters the nasopharynx and trachea [5,6]. A rhinovirus that causes common cold replicated better at 33 0 C than 37 0 C in airway epithelial cells, and this was associated with the better pattern recognition receptor (PRR)-mediated induction of Types 1 and 3 interferons and attendant interferon stimulated genes (ISGs) by the virus at 37 0 C [7] .…”