The control of breathing in clinical practice

The control of breathing results from a complex interaction involving the r espiratory centers, which feed signals to a central control mechanism that, in turn, provides output to the effector muscles, In this review, we descr ibe the individual elements of this system, and what is known about their f unction in man. We outline clinically relevant aspects of the integration o f human ventilatory control system, and describe altered function in respon se to special circumstances, disorders, and medications. We emphasize the c linical relevance of this topic by employing case presentations of active p atients from our practice.