Lung volume reduction (LVR) surgery, now quite frequently used as a therapeutic option in lung emphysema, is aimed at advantageously interfering with the structural alterations of bronchoalveolar architecture and the thoracic cage and diaphragm changes characterizing the emphysema. All the changes of the emphysematous parenchyma are triggered by interalveolar septa rupture. The purpose of this article is to analyze this main pathogenic event and its purely mechanical consequences, which are the only ones that can be expected to be modified by LVR, independently of the nature and extent of the etiopathogenic process that brought the septa to the condition in which their rupture was possible.

Lung volume reduction surgery can modify the mechanical consequences of interalveolar septa rupture in lung emphysema, regardless of the etiopathogenic process that caused the septa to rupture.

Mechanical Events In Physiopathology Of Idiopathic PulmonaryEmphysema: A Theoretical Analysis

Key Takeaway: Lung volume reduction surgery can modify the mechanical consequences of interalveolar septa rupture in lung emphysema, regardless of the etiopathogenic process that caused the septa to rupture.