The diaphragm is made of muscular and connective tissue and stretches to the lower part of the rib cage. The diaphragm is the membrane that stands between the abdominal and thoracic cavities that’s made from the heart, ribs, and lungs and is also responsible for the inhaling and exhaling systems.

Your diaphragm may be segregated into three sections: the sternal, costal, and lumbar portions. The sternal part of the diaphragm comprises of the two muscular slips from the xiphoid process. On the other hand, the costal part integrates with the transverses abdominis muscle. It consists of the cartilages and adjoining sections of the six ribs positioned at the thoracic cavity. Lastly, the lumbar portion of the diaphragm comprises of lumbocostal arches and the crura. The diaphragm also has a number of gaps in it to allow the passage of some other parts of the body between the thorax and the abdomen. There are three important openings within the diaphragm. These are the aortic, oesophageal, and inferior vena caval.

The diaphragm is an extremely important part of the body as it plays on several functions that are important to keep a person alive. During inhalation and exhalation, your diaphragm contracts in order to increase the size of the thoracic cavity, which enlarges to lungs to accomodate more air. This takes place in two different varieties of breathing. One is referred to as belly breathing, in which the thoracic cavity extends down. The next form of breathing is named thoracic breathing and lets the thoracic cavity to enlarge upside.

The diaphragm is also related to various functions that are not related to breathing. Such as, the diaphragm is involved in functions such as vomiting and micturition. The diaphragm acts in such activities by maximizing the intra-abdominal tension of the body. The diaphragm acts in vomiting, but it might also help to avoid vomiting. It is done by the diaphragm exerting force on the oesophagus as it goes through the oesophageal hiatus.

One of the more well-known related functions of the diaphragm is hiccups. These are automatic and unexpected contractions of the diaphragm. The mechanism involves the rapid rush of air inside the lungs pressuring the vocal cords to close. Although we all assume that hiccups are generally undesirable or disturbing, it should be noted that they are benign to our body. Hiccups commonly disappear fairly swiftly after first presenting. So it is merely a matter of waiting for your diaphragm to settle.

This entry was posted on Friday, January 13th, 2012 at 11:08 am and is filed under respiratory system. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.