Pulmonary Edema and Inflammation

This monograph is concerned not so much with the immediate causes of pulmonary edema and inflammation as with an interpretation of the fundamental mechanisms involved in terms of the anatomy and physiology of the lungs. The minute structure of the lungs is evaluated from the standpoint of the elements favoring transudation and exudation into the alveolar spaces, as well as the factors opposing this tendency. The work reflects throughout the author's well-known interest in the physiology and the pathology of the lymphatic system, and its unique functions in the lung are carefully considered. The author stresses particularly the role of anoxia in bringing about alterations in the capillary permeability of the alveolar vessels, and therefore the great importance of proper oxygen therapy when pulmonary edema threatens. The monograph obviously does not aim at completeness. It represents primarily Dr. Drinker's interpretations and experimental results, rather than the many conflicting points of view in this field. The facile style of this work is in keeping with the fact that all but one of the chapters constituted a recent series of lectures presented by the author at the Bowman Gray School of Medicine.