Final answer:
A pneumothorax, or collapsed lung, occurs when air enters the pleural space and disrupts the negative pressure essential for lung expansion, leading to lung collapse and symptoms like chest pain and shortness of breath.
Step-by-step explanation:
A condition that results when an injury allows air to enter through a hole in the chest wall or surface of the lung during a patient’s breaths is known as a pneumothorax, often referred to as a collapsed lung. When air enters the pleural space, the pressure can cause the lung to collapse. This is because the negative pressure that is normally present in the pleural space, which is essential for lung expansion during inhalation, is disrupted. A pneumothorax can be spontaneous, traumatic, or iatrogenic (caused by medical intervention). Symptoms may include sudden chest pain and shortness of breath.
On a related note, physiological dead space occurs in a region of lung tissue that is not participating effectively in gas exchange, for example due to a puncture wound. Conditions like pneumonia and emphysema also disrupt normal gas exchange but in different ways. Pneumonia involves fluid-filled alveoli preventing efficient gas exchange, while in emphysema, the structural damage to the alveoli leads to less gas being exchanged in the lungs.