Mathematical study of periodic breathing as an instability of the respiratory system (Q2365588)

The authors consider the problem of respiratory stability. The theoretical studies are based on the idea that the stability characteristics of the respiratory system determine the occurrence of periodic breathing. First, the authors derived a simple, two-dimensional dynamical model of the \(CO_ 2\) plant from physiological considerations and based on the law of mass conservation. Then, by considering two \(CO_ 2\) feedback control loops, the authors obtain two differential systems with time delay; namely, the central and the peripheral controller system. The authors show that the central component is not involved in respiratory instability phenomena, such as periodic breathing, whereas the peripheral component plays a major role. The explicit analytical index of stability obtained allows the definition of conditions of occurrence of periodic breathing in terms of the fundamental respiratory parameters. This index can be used to evaluate the influence of various respiratory parameters on the stability of respiration.